Will of Fire
by tehedward
Summary: Just when she thought her life was over, Quinn Fabray discovers she's been given a second chance. However she soon learns that this new world of hers is fraught with unimaginable dangers. Can she protect not only herself, but more importantly those close to her? Maybe, but in order to do so she'll have to discover her own "Will of Fire."
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer and Author's Note. First and foremost, I don't own either Naruto or Glee. Now with that out of the way. This is a story I started a while ago and that I've been updating fairly frequently, but have never gotten around to publishing. It's been a bit of a hobby story for me, meaning that whenever I've been bored or couldn't think to work on anything else, or just wanted to waste some time I worked on this story. It starts off a little slow in my opinion and a lot of the early chapters are done as exposition, just explaining things and this crossover world I've set up. But the further into the story it goes the less and less that happens, so please bear with me.**

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 **xXx-Prologue-xXx**

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 _Danzo Shimura wasn't a man to give himself over to any kind of emotion but he couldn't help the feeling of pride that overtook him as the final preparations for this project were underway. He was currently up in the catwalks, looking down into the vast cavern below him as his Root ninja completed the final preparations._

 _Years of blood and sweat had lead up to this moment. Countless hours of research, and failed trials. Hundreds of lives lost. But now, finally, everything was falling into place and a new dawn for Konoha was approaching. After today, nothing would ever be the same again._

" _Is everything ready?" A calm and steady voice asks, and Danzo Shimura can feel a shiver of fear slink down his spine and it takes all of his years of shinobi training to hide it. He hadn't even sensed the other person's approach. As much as it killed him to admit it, he knew when he was outclassed._

" _Yes, we're making the final preparations now." He answers._

 _"Good, there can be no foul-ups. Too much is riding on this."_

 _Danzo doesn't say anything, instead, he just nods his head as he continues to look down from the balcony to the action below. One-hundred people were currently bound by genjutsu and placed in the center of a giant sealing array, the most complex array that Danzo had ever seen, possibly to have ever been created._

 _Various Root ninja meticulously going over every inch of the array, making sure that nothing was out of place, that everything was perfect. There could be no mistakes once the seal was activated. Too much was riding on this, there was zero room for error, if even one symbol was even a millimeter off, it could throw the entire array off balance and ruin everything. The risks involved and the sacrifices necessary to make this technique work were so very high and so very demanding, but completely worth it in Danzo's mind. If the technique worked then Konoha would experience an influx of resources and technology the likes of which had never been seen before._

 _If this worked then the village that he loved so dearly, that he was willing to do anything for, would have an incalculable advantage over their enemies. What were the lives of One-hundred souls in comparison to the safety and prosperity of the village? No, in Danzo's mind these people below should feel honored to give their lives for the village._

 _Their sacrifice was not in vain. In fact it was necessary. Each and every one of them was needed, a sacrifice of one hundred souls to invoke the power of a god._

 _One of his agents appears beside him. "The preparations are complete Lord Danzo." They say in a monotone voice._

 _Danzo glances briefly over at the shrouded figure who nods their head, giving him the signal to go ahead._

 _"Activate the array." He tells them, his agent disappearing from his side and reappearing down below. He watches as they walk to the top of the array, taking his place at the head of the circle. Surrounding the circle at perfectly even distances are six other Root agents for a total of seven._

 _A second of silence passes and then as if reacting to some unseen signal they spring into action, their hands blurring in perfect unison into a series of complex hand seals. Their chakra floods the cavern as they pump it into the seal, activating it and as they do so the symbols from the seal begin to glow with energy, lighting up the cavern and a sense of excitement floods Danzo._

 _It was working._

 _Suddenly, from below there is an angry shout, one of the one-hundred sacrifices had broken free from the genjutsu that trapped them and before anyone could think to stop him or cancel the technique he had charged at one of the Root ninja performing the technique, disrupting it. He is put down quickly but the damage is done and the seal dies down, all energy involved disappearing._

 _Danzo glares at the array down below. All that time and effort was wasted, they would have to try again. The back of Danzo's neck prickles as he can sense the anger rolling off of the person beside him._

" _You've failed me." The voice says, even and calm. Like the eye of a hurricane._

 _Danzo has to bite his tongue to stop from retorting. It wouldn't do any good to anger them further. "We can start over, this is a minor setback, nothing more." The words taste like ash in his mouth, this wasn't his fault._

 _Whatever the figures retort was going to be however is cut off by a scream of agony coming from below. Both Danzo and the figure look down the balcony and see that one of the sacrifices has fallen to the ground dead. A second later another one of them screams and falls dead, then another and then another. Within seconds all of them are dead._

 _Minutes pass in silence as tension fills the air. "What just happ- aack!" Danzo cries out as a heavy and powerful presence appears and fills the cavern, a cold fear, the likes of which Danzo had never experienced before overwhelms him and he falls to his knees, choking on his own breath._

 _He had been exposed to killer intent before, he had come face to face with powerful enemies and had more than once faced the possibility of his own death. He was a seasoned shinobi and yet nothing in all of his vast experiences had ever prepared him for the fear that filled him. It was cold and unyielding, and Danzo knew without a shadow of a doubt that he was going to die. It was as if death itself had arrived and knew him by name._

 _They had successfully summoned a god, but had no control over it._

 _Suddenly another presence fills the room, even more powerful than the first. This new presence drives away the icy fear and replaces it with its own white hot burning rage. It's awesome power searing its way into his very soul. If Danzo thought he had known fear before, he had been sorely mistaken because whatever this new presence was, it was angry and there was nothing in this world that Danzo would do, nothing he wouldn't sacrifice, even Konoha itself, to turn this things anger away from him and onto something else._

 _A bright and blinding light, as bright as the sun, fills the cavern and Danzo has to shut his eyes quickly to avoid being blinded. He screams in agony at the searing heat and gasps as all but the barest minimum of his chakra is ripped from his body, leaving him weaker than a new born child. The cries of pain that fill cavern, let him know that he isn't the only one suffering. Their screams of agony joining his in a hellish choir._

 _And then, just as Danzo is sure that he can endure no more. The moment where he was about to give in and welcome his own death, anything to let him escape the terrible rage that was consuming him, the presence disappears. It's a shock to his entire system and his mind, body, and soul don't quite know how to handle it._

 _Danzo breathes slowly in and out, trying to recover from the ordeal that he had just endured. However his body could only take so much and it had been pushed well past its limits and he could feel himself fading away, his body completely exhausted, but at the very least he wasn't going to die._

 _And as the last vestiges of consciousness leave him Danzo could swear that he could hear a woman speaking. Gently whispering soft words of peace and comfort and Danzo felt a sense of shame, because he knew that the words weren't meant for him and that he was listening in on something that he had no right to hear. It was the oddest sensation, to feel ashamed, and Danzo welcomed the darkness as he finally lost consciousness._

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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She should be in pain.

That was the first thought that crossed Quinn's mind as the world around her begins slowly shift into focus. She should be in extreme, gut wrenching pain. I mean there was blood and glass everywhere, she could even see a couple of her own ribs sticking out of the torn and bloodied dress she was wearing, the car was twisted around her in a mangled heap. She should be in a lot of pain.

Should, being the operative word, because she wasn't.

She couldn't feel anything and that was what truly scared her. Here she was in the middle of a horrific car crash and she couldn't feel a thing. She attempts to move something, an arm, a leg, something, anything, but she can't.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, despite how scared she was at the moment, there was only one thought consuming her mind at that moment. That this couldn't be happening, it just couldn't. She had to get to that wedding, she had to stop it, and she had to tell Rachel how she really felt. But as the minutes pass her by, struggling with all of her might and yet still being unable to move, she realizes that it will never happen.

She was dying.

She could hear the sirens in the background, getting louder and louder as they approached, but she knew it would be too late. Her vision was starting to lose focus again, and the sound was getting muffled, everything was dulling down. Not that she was feeling much before though, a broken neck if she had to venture a guess. It wasn't fair. There was still so much she wanted to do and experience and she still had so many regrets.

She didn't know what the reaction would have been if she had gotten to Rachel in time and told her how she truly felt about her, she had no idea how Rachel would react, she only knew what she hoped it would be. She hoped Rachel would feel the same way, that somehow, after years of pining after the other girl, that somehow, Rachel would find it in her heart to feel the same way about her in return. That in spite of all of the awful things that Quinn had done to her in the past, that Rachel would look past that and see who she was now. That she would know how much Quinn loved her and maybe find it within herself to love her in return.

She never got to really make up with Santana and Brittany either. Their friendship was on the mend, but it was slow going. She wanted them both to know how incredibly proud of them and happy for them she was. She wanted them to know how much she loved them and how grateful she was that they had continued to try and be there for her. She knew she hadn't made it easy and yet they had still tried.

She also wanted to repair her friendship with Mercedes. They had at one time been very close and she counted herself lucky to be able to call the other girl a friend. But after she had moved out of the other girl's house and back in with her mother they had just kind of drifted apart, and Quinn hated that she had let that happen.

And what about her mother? She wanted so badly to find a way to fix her relationship with her. They were still so distant with each other right now, they didn't know how to talk to each other, but they were trying. It couldn't end now, not now when she and her mom were getting closer and closer to becoming a family again.

And Beth, her little Beth, her perfect thing. The one thing she had ever done right in this world. She wanted, more than anything to become the kind of person that her daughter could be proud of. She wasn't perfect, not by the longest of shots, but she was trying to do better. That way, someday maybe Beth would be able to look at her and see someone worthwhile.

And she was going to Yale. She had worked so hard and so diligently, doing everything in her power to keep and maintain perfect grades. To fill her transcripts with extracurricular activities and charity works that would look good on a college application and she had done it, she had gotten accepted into Yale. She was going to study drama and she was going to become an actress and travel the world… everything in her life was finally coming into place and now it was over. Just like that, gone in a flash.

She should have known better, despite her efforts to change, to do better, to be better, people like her didn't catch breaks, they didn't get second chances. They didn't deserve them. She had hurt so many people in her life, people that she was supposed to have cared about, of course the efforts she had made to change weren't enough, of course karma had finally exacted its toll from her.

"No…" She manages to croak out, this wasn't fair. She was trying to do better and to make amends. That should count for something, right?

"No… I… no, please…" Her already darkening vision blurs from the forming tears. "Don't… please God, someone… anyone… don't let it end… not like… not like this… please…" Please if he would just spare her, she wouldn't waste it, she would do better, try harder. She would make something of herself, she would do good, be good. But it seemed her prayer had fallen upon deaf ears.

As Quinn falls into complete despair, she takes her final quivering breath, and just before her world turns dark, she almost feels as if someone is holding her gently to them, whispering soft and soothing words. A light, ethereal presence, doing its best to provide her with some semblance of comfort and peace as it gathers her into its warm and loving embrace and carries her away.

When the ambulance arrives the paramedics rush over to what was left of the little red car. Desperately hoping that they had gotten there quick enough to do some good. However it was too late. The young woman's body was battered and broken almost beyond recognition. Her glazed eyes staring out into nothing, as if gazing into the abyss. Fresh tear tracks running down her face, already drying, showing that even if it was only for a moment she had survived the initial crash. But they had arrived too late, and even if they had gotten there earlier it might not have done any good anyway.

Quinn Fabray was dead.


	2. Chapter 1

**I do not own Glee or Naruto. So a couple of things, I usually only update once a week and on Friday's. That's not set in stone, but it's generally how it works :). For those of you who may have questions about my other stories please check out my profile, I talk about what's going on with them in there.**

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 **Chapter 1**

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The first thing that Quinn became aware of as she regained consciousness is that she felt warm and safe. The darkness envelops her completely but it doesn't frighten her, in fact she draws strength from it. There was also a sound, she couldn't quite place it, but if she had to guess she would say it sounded like a heartbeat, but that didn't make sense. Why would she be hearing a heartbeat, especially when she was almost positive that it wasn't hers? Whatever it was, that sound, more than anything else, made her feel safe.

It was weird. She had died, she knew that much and it wasn't like she had any real idea about what death would actually be like, but this was so different than anything she had ever imagined. There was no fluffy clouds with robed people playing harps, there was no golden throne of God and choirs of countless angels. She would have almost felt a little let down if she didn't feel so content. On the other hand, she considers, there was no fire and brimstone or an angry red goat man with a pitchfork, so that was a rather large plus.

No if this was death, just darkness, warmth, safety, and most importantly that sound, that steady rhythmic beating sound that right now was everything to her, then death wasn't so bad. She wouldn't mind spending eternity like this. It's not what she would have imagined death to be, but right now she felt truly at peace.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Quinn wasn't sure how much time had passed, she didn't particularly care either. The comfort and the warmth and the beating sound were still there and that was all that really mattered. Her space had progressively gotten smaller but she wasn't worried about that, it was snug, but not tight. And she had discovered that she wasn't alone in here.

She couldn't really communicate with the other person but they shared the occasional touch to let each other know they were there and Quinn found herself feeling a strong connection to this other person, a closeness that she'd never shared with anyone before. Whoever this other person was, Quinn just knew in her heart that they were special and that they cared about her.

The first time they had touched it had startled Quinn. She hadn't realized that she wasn't alone so it had been a bit of a shock to discover otherwise, especially with all the time that had passed… or she thought had passed. Time really had no meaning here. But even still, just touching the other person hadn't been what had really startled her. It was the rush of… life… energy… she had no way to really describe it. But whatever it was had surged through her and had started a change in her body that was foreign to her in every way. Not that it was bad, quite the opposite, this new energy that was now flowing through her completed her in a way that she didn't even know she needed. It was like finding a missing puzzle piece that she hadn't even realized was missing and she had her companion to thank for it.

The only thing she didn't find all that appealing about her companion was their incessant need to move around. Quinn, for the most part was content to relax in this strange afterlife, but her companion never sat still for as long as she would like.

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She still found her consciousness fading in and out at times but for the most part she was becoming more aware of her surroundings. Sometimes, if she really strained hard, she thought she could make out other people talking, but she couldn't quite hear what they were saying and besides that, it sounded like gibberish.

But the vibrations of their voices were pleasant, almost as pleasant as the beating sound in the background and so she didn't mind it when they appeared. Sometimes she even thought she heard singing as well, the most beautiful voice that Quinn had ever heard, and she had heard Rachel Berry sing so that was saying something. She loved it when the singing came along, maybe she had just spent too much time in glee club, but she could listen to and feel the vibrations when they sang for eternity.

Really, considering how she had died, considering all of the mistakes she had made, considering where she was always worried she would go, especially with her feelings for Rachel being as strong as they were, this warm, dark, little paradise she had found herself in was pretty good. For the first time in a long time she felt happy and safe. Two feelings that were extremely rare for her and all she knew was that she didn't want it to ever end.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Something was wrong.

There was a change and she could almost sense the distress coming from her companion. Something was changing, her world was shifting. She reaches out to her companion hoping to provide them some comfort, but in what felt like the blink of an eye, they were gone. She felt herself begin to move and then she felt like she was being compressed and then strangled.

What was happening, what was wrong?

Was she being cast out of heaven, had God decided that she wasn't good enough anymore? She began to panic, she couldn't breathe, something was choking her, wrapping around her neck and strangling her. And then, suddenly, everything was cold and she could finally breathe. She tried to open her eyes but she couldn't, and there was a baby crying, why was there a baby crying, shouldn't someone go help it or comfort it, or something? And where was her companion, they were missing, they could be in trouble, she had no idea where they were but she could almost sense their distress. She had to help them, they were important to her.

Okay… she needed to stay calm, this was scary, but if she panicked then she was no good to anyone. She needed to remain calm and figure out what was going on. But it didn't help matters that she couldn't even open her eyes. Wherever she was, it was cold and bright, because she was absolutely freezing and even with her eyes shut she could feel the light blasting her. She felt herself being wiped down by large hands almost the size of her entire body, they were gentle with her but she didn't know them so she tried to struggle. She may as well have tried to move a mountain for all the good it did her.

People were talking hurriedly, it was too loud, especially compared to the silence of the dark and the steady rhythmic beating that had accompanied it as well. That sound had been muffled and comforting, but all the sounds out here were loud and sharp and hurt her ears. She identified at least four other people in this room, five if she counted the person holding her. She didn't know how she knew they were all there, she just did.

They were speaking, but it made absolutely no sense, she had no idea what they were saying, because whatever it was it wasn't English. They didn't sound angry though, maybe a little urgent, but definitely not angry which was a good thing. If they weren't angry then maybe she could reason with them, find her friend and then they could escape.

She finally manages to open her eyes, but it's all blurry and bright and kind of hurts, almost like staring directly into the sun. She tries to call out for help, but she can't, her voice isn't working. She's being wrapped in something, a blanket she thinks, it was better than nothing, but nowhere near the warmth and comfort that her other home had been.

She wanted to go back, this wasn't fair, they couldn't do this to her, they couldn't give her paradise and the just rip it away. God or the universe or whatever existed out there had already killed her once, wasn't that enough, couldn't they just let her rest? What was happening to her, she was so weak, she could barely even move her head? The last time she had been this scared was the car crash.

She felt herself being passed off to and carried in the arms of another giant. Her vision is still blurry but she can tell that this one had long blond hair and blue eyes and he was speaking that strange language to her, using a very soft and careful tone, almost like he was trying to comfort her. She had absolutely no idea who he was but the vibrations from his voice were familiar, he may have been one of the people she could occasionally hear. She tries to speak to him but all that came out of her mouth was an awkward little squawk. She feels her world rumble as he chuckles at her and then she is handed off to yet another giant.

It's at this moment, that she finally gains her bearings and her world comes into a bit more focus. She's being held in the arms of a giant woman with brown hair that is matted down to her forehead by sweat and her eyes are puffy and red, but she's beaming down at her. Holding her closely in one of her arms. Across from Quinn being held in the other arm was a crying baby. And when Quinn looked over at the rather large baby the energy that had started to flow within her when she and her companion had first touched reacts to the baby's presence and Quinn instantly knew that the child was her companion.

And then the woman spoke and Quinn's world stopped because she had become intimately familiar with the sound and the vibrations of that voice. It was the same voice who she thought she could hear singing on occasion. The woman had tears streaming down her face but she seemed happy. Quinn had to know, who was she? Who was this woman that held her, whom she had heard sing?

She hears the familiar male voice speak, once again using that strange language _. 'Why can't they speak English?_ ' Quinn thinks a little petulantly. Then the woman speaks, answering back while looking at the baby."

"いの、なまい は いのです。"

"と、そのほかの？" The man says sounding a little choked up, but there is still a questioning lilt to his voice.

The woman smiles down at her and despite herself Quinn feels her chest fill with warmth. If she didn't know better she would say that this woman loved her. The look that the woman was giving her, it was the same look that Quinn could remember giving to Beth right after she had been born.

The woman says something else, this time to her, it has a slightly mocking tone to it almost like it was baby talk, but that made no sense and she still had no idea of what was actually being said. However the man must have thought that it was funny because he laughs.

The woman hums, "あの。。。なまい は。。。 りんです。"

Whatever else they were saying was drowned out by the unsettling realization of where she was. She couldn't believe she hadn't realized it before, it seemed so obvious now, but to be fair it's not like it made any sense in the first place and she had no idea of how it had happened, but she now knew what was going on with her.

She had just been born.

Again.

Literally.

And the reason she felt so helpless was because she was. She was completely and totally helpless in this little body. She wasn't sure what to think at this point, the only thought that did come to mind was _'Oh fuck.'_

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Inoichi Yamanaka stared down helplessly at his beautiful wife as she squeezed his hand so tightly that he had to send a surge of chakra through it to keep her from crushing it. But he didn't care, his only real concern was for her, her and the two lives she was currently bringing into this world.

Twins, he couldn't believe it, the whole thing was a huge mystery because originally there had only been just the one child. Then one day about three months ago Megumi had felt a surge of chakra rush through her, strong enough to bring her to her knees and strong enough that even he had felt it from across the room. He was at her side in an instant and they had rushed to the hospital, terrified that this might have been some kind of failed assassination attempt, after all he had just retired from the position as the Head Konoha's Intelligence Department earlier this year and had made quite a few enemies during that time. They had even been worried enough to bring it to the attention of the Hokage himself. And when they arrived at the hospital they discovered something… unexplainable, Megumi was now carrying two children instead of one.

The concept of twins wasn't new of course, but the appearance of this new child had them all baffled. The baby had been too far along to have formed a twin, especially one that looked to be at the exact same stage of development as they had been. Test after test had been performed, and while Megumi had not been thrilled with how invasive some of them had been, they had to be sure that this newcomer wasn't a threat to them or their baby. The Hokage himself had assisted the medical shinobi with their seal work just to be sure. The shinobi world was full of dangers, sometimes hidden in plain sight, but after weeks and weeks of testing and retesting they found that the new child was just that, a child.

The spirits or the gods or whatever existed in the heavens had for some reason decided to bless them with another child and both he and Megumi couldn't have been more excited. The medical shinobi and the Fourth had hypothesized that somehow, from somewhere, a foreign chakra had been introduced into Megumi's system. This strange chakra had then followed her Chakra system to the baby that she carried inside of her. From there it had taken a strand of DNA from the baby growing inside of her and then used that to replicate and create a body for itself, a perfect replica of their child. And despite their best efforts, neither he, Chouza, nor even Shikaku had been able to locate this mystery Chakra's source.

There were other factors involved that they had no clue about, things they couldn't explain, like how Megumi's body had not only accommodated the newcomer but had assisted it as well in making a place for it inside of her. When it was all said and done you would never have known that this was anything other than your run of the mill set of twins. However, none of the mysteries involved mattered in the end, at least not to Inoichi and Megumi, the newcomer posed no threat to them or anyone as far as they could tell and so they just accepted that they were going to have two babies instead of just one. They were Shinobi, stranger things had happened… maybe not to them, but certainly somewhere out there. Right? Once they had accepted that, it was easy and they quickly came to love and worry about this new child just as much as the first one.

Others in the village hierarchy weren't so accepting though. Lord Danzo, for instance, had wanted to abort both children and have them studied, he wanted to find out exactly what had happened and he had his supporters too. Inoichi had flat out told the Hokage, Danzo, the village elders and council that anyone who tried it would die. He would kill them without hesitation or mercy. That conversation had been… he was going to go with intense.

It was actually a little scary how quickly the whole thing had almost escalated into a full blown civil war. Because while Danzo had had his supporters, Inoichi had had his own. Luckily for him and his side the Hokage had been one of them, and while there were checks and balances in their system of government at the end of the day they were a dictatorship, not a democracy, and the Hokage was the final word on any issue.

Inoichi knew that they were lucky the fourth was so kind hearted because there was ample reason for Minato Namikaze to view this newcomer as a possible threat. And he knew that if it came down to a fight there was no doubt in Inoichi's mind that the other man would have wiped the floor with him as well as anyone else in the room that was stupid enough to actually fight him. It was a fight that Inoichi was well aware that he couldn't have won.

He had agreed however that the child should be monitored, it would be foolish not to. But he made it perfectly clear that this child, his child, would be watched over by him and his wife, while under the protection of the Yamanaka clan. Which also meant by extension, and pretty much without saying, that the Akimichi and the Nara clans protection as well.

The history of the three clans dated back to a time before the hidden villages, before even the elemental nations. Back when the Yamanaka's and the Nara's had served as vassals to the Akimichi in what was then known as the Land of Vines in what was now a part of the north western border of the modern day land of fire. And generally speaking it was rare to find an issue that the three clans didn't side with each other on.

There were seven people total in the delivery room, which was covered from the ceiling to the floor and all of the walls with various seals as well as a couple of medical machines to monitor the birth of this mystery child. Megumi was not pleased with any of this in any way, shape, or form but the mystery surrounding the baby meant that there was little choice in the matter. At the very least it was with people Inoichi felt they could trust and Megumi was getting the best medical care currently available in the village. They couldn't have done any better even if Lady Tsunade herself had shown up.

Currently the room was occupied by himself and Megumi of course, and then there was the doctor. Assisting her was another medical-nin that had been chosen for not only their skill but their discretion. And then finally the Hokage as well as two of his Anbu guards. And just outside in the waiting room were his best friends, Chouza and Shikaku, with their wives and various other members of the Yamanaka clan.

When the Fourth Hokage had arrived he had kept it brief. _"I am so sorry about all of this, this should be a happy occasion for you and your family but here I am intruding on this moment. I promise I won't stay any longer than I have to, I just need to make sure everything is safe and I want you to know that that includes your children, okay? And hey, at least with it being me monitoring the situation those old crones that I work with won't have any reason to doubt that this was anything more than a new life coming into this world. At least not without questioning my abilities and defying me directly."_

This, more than anything else, provided some comfort to both parents because not even Danzo, who was well known to bend the rules to get achieve his goals, would be stupid enough to defy the fourth directly, no matter what concerns or designs he may have. The fourth kept a much tighter rein on his advisors than the third had. And after the fourth had said his piece he moved off to a corner and as far out of the way as possible.

"You're doing great sweetheart, you're so doing great, you're almost there." Inoichi says to his wife encouragingly.

"It hurts…" She groans back as another contraction hits.

"I know, but you are doing so great, you can do this-"

"The first baby is coming." doctor interrupts, "Megumi, I want you to give it one more big push, okay, you're almost there."

Megumi just nods her head and then does as instructed and in a matter of seconds his first child is born. A daughter, he was thrilled. Through all of the testing and the poking and the prodding, they had miraculously managed to keep the gender of their babies a surprise. A little girl, his first little girl, he watches as the assistant takes care of cleaning up the baby before handing her to him.

"Is that the one?" the Hokage asks, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.

The doctor shakes her head, before turning back to her work.

The next child comes with complications. _'Of course it does.'_ Inoichi thinks dryly in the back of his mind, hidden behind all of the panic as he holds his eldest daughter close to his chest, whispering calming words to her as she cries, telling her that she had such a bright future to look forward to and a family here who loved her and would protect her.

The next child's umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck. The doctor moves into action, barking out orders to her assistant, they act quickly and one easy emergency C-section later and their second child is brought into the world and neither mother nor daughter are any worse for the wear.

"You won't even have a scar." The doctor promises as she finishes running her glowing green palms over the last of the incision.

However Megumi isn't paying any attention to that. "Let me see my babies." she says with an exhausted gasp and so Inoichi hands her their eldest squalling daughter. "Shhh, shh, shhhh, it's okay baby, it's okay. I'm your mommy. Oh it's okay, you just let it all out, you've got something to say and we're going to listen, huh-"

Inoichi turns his attention to his other daughter who is being cleaned up by the doctor. "How is she doing, is she okay? She's being awfully quiet over there." He asks concerned for a multitude of reasons.

"She's doing just fine." The doctor says handing her over to Inoichi, who cradles her in his arms.

"Well, it seems to me that you have two perfectly normal, healthy, baby girls." The Hokage says stepping towards them, a kind smile on his face and his blue eyes alight with joy for them. "Just make sure to keep me informed if anything unusual happens in the future and with that I think we can call this whole issue closed."

"Thank you lord Hokage." Inoichi says, releasing a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding as relief floods through him.

The Hokage places a hand on his shoulder. "Congratulations to the both of you, you are truly blessed." And with that the Hokage and his bodyguards are gone, leaving the family to have their first moments together in private.

"Hey sweetheart, hey, I'm your daddy and I promise you, everything is going to be okay, alright." He whispers down to her softly. "I love you, I love you more than I ever thought it was possible to ever love someone and it doesn't matter where you came from… all that matters is that you're here."

Her little blue eyes are darting everywhere, but not focusing on any particular thing. She gives a tiny squawk as if answering him, her face all scrunched up and serious. He didn't think a newborn baby could have such a serious expression but this one somehow manages it.

"Can I see her?" Megumi asks, cradling the first baby in her left arm.

Inoichi nods, "Here you go." He says as he carefully passes her their second child.

Megumi takes the child and looks down at her, tears of joy streaming down her face. They were perfect in every single way, and other than a brief scare that was easily overcome, both babies were healthy and with Hokage's parting words they were now safe as well.

"I wish Kenichi could be here." Megumi says softly.

Kenichi was Megumi's younger brother and the two of them had always been close. He had gone missing about four months ago, and was presumed dead seeing that none of his team had returned from their mission either.

"I know, I do too… What are their names?" Inoichi asks her, wanting to get her mind off of her brother and onto happier things and since Megumi had carried them and given birth to them, it only seemed fair that she got to name them.

Megumi looks down at their crying eldest before looking up at him meaningfully. "Ino, her name is Ino."

You could have hit him over the head with a hammer and it still wouldn't have hit him the same way as that had. Ino, his namesake, his eldest. Ino. No word had ever been invented that could possibly describe what that meant to him.

"And the other?" He asks, his voice cracking with emotion.

Megumi looks down at the youngest daughter, who is looking at them, her face as fierce as it was possible for a newborn's face to be, as if trying to study them and the world around her. "Look at her face, it's just so serious, isn't it?"

Inoichi chuckles to himself, because he had noticed the same thing.

"Um… her name is… Rin."

Inoichi chuckles lightly at that. Rin, it could mean severe or cold, but it could also mean dignified, which was definitely fitting. She was so quiet, as if all this crying and baby nonsense was beneath her.

Rin gurgles.

"I think she likes it. I know I do, both of them are great names." He says as he leans in and captures his wife's lips with his own for a brief kiss. "Ino and Rin Yamanaka, two perfect names for two perfect little girls."

"You're not disappointed?" Megumi asks, "Chouza and Shikaku both had sons and I know you wanted your kids to grow up friends with theirs. Be the next generation of Ino-Shika-Cho…"

"Nothing's changed with that, boys or girls, they can still be friends. I'm not disappointed, not in the slightest, I'm happier than I have ever been."

Megumi looks up at him, smiling. "Me too."

Suddenly Rin begins to cry, "Oh, oh, oh, there she goes, I knew she had voice somewhere in there." Megumi says sweetly, her own barely above a whisper. Inoichi takes Ino from her and begins to rock her back and forth and Ino finally begins to calm down as she rests in his arms. Meanwhile Megumi starts to sing softly to Rin, who starts to cry even harder.


	3. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: So a couple of things. One I apologize for how much exposition there is in this chapter. I'm just trying to establish my interpretation of the Naruto verse through the eyes of someone, Quinn, who has no real idea or preconceived notion of it. Any other story I've read where someone is reborn into the Naruto world they have a passing familiarity with it. They at least know major plot points and who the main players are. Quinn doesn't. And speaking of Quinn, a stylistic choice I chose to make with this story is that the names Rin and Quinn are completely interchangeable in this story. Naruto-verse characters will think of and call her Rin while Quinn will continue to think of herself as Quinn. It can be a little confusing but I think I make it work. The easiest thing to remember is that Rin and Quinn are the exact same person and if I ever refer to Kakashi's teammate who was also named Rin, I will be sure to make it extremely clear.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 2-xXx**

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Quinn was determined to make the best of this situation. It was a brand new life, she had been dying, had died, and for some reason she had been allowed to be reborn, she couldn't waste this opportunity. She was actually a little ashamed to admit that it took her almost two weeks to come to this decision, during which time all she could do was cry. The depression and despair had hit her hard, she couldn't eat, and the only time she slept was when she was able to cry herself to sleep, which was awful because she was then plagued by nightmares of the crash, which in turn woke her up and made her cry even more.

What had really changed her mind about this whole thing though was her new father. Or Otousan, to the best that she had been able to work out. He used that word a lot while pointing to himself so it was either father or his name, she wasn't sure, because she heard the word Inoichi thrown around quite a bit as well.

Anyway, her parents had gotten so worried that they had taken her back to the hospital, where she had been connected to an IV for nutrients and was then surrounded by strange writing that seemed glow and pulse at times, it certainly caused that energy in her body to react. She was pretty sure they had placed her in some kind of pediatrics ward, and despite her best efforts they kept her alive. Because at the time she had wanted to die, because all of this was just so wrong. She was an adult stuck in a baby's body and trapped in a strange new world and at the time it was way too much for her to handle.

It was either late at night or early in the morning, it was fairly impossible for her to tell, that her new father had lifted her in his arms and held a bottle up to her face for what felt like the millionth time. His eyes were red and his face was full of despair as he pleaded with her in his strange tongue to eat.

That same word over and over again as he began to cry.

 _"Onegai."_

And it was at that moment that it struck her, her actions were affecting these people as well, not just her. They had no idea of what a freak she truly was, of how unnatural she was, they just thought they were losing their daughter. She had given up Beth and it had nearly destroyed her but at least she had known that Beth was in a safe place and loved. These people had no such assurance, and she couldn't even imagine how it would feel if she were to ever learn that Beth was refusing to eat and trying to die. So with what felt like a huge amount of effort she stopped her crying and started to feed.

His laughter and the joy on his face was worth it and soon she found herself surrounded by her new family. Her new sister, her new mother and her new father, all of them so happy with her for such a little thing. In that moment she made a promise, she would make the most of this second chance, she would be the perfect daughter to them, the perfect sister, she wouldn't waste this opportunity.

And more importantly than anything else, she resolved that they would never, ever, learn the truth about her. Her first family had rejected her completely and by all accounts she had been a perfectly normal human girl. She had no way of knowing how these people would react if they ever learned the truth about her, but it couldn't be pretty.

Currently, she was in her mother's arms, and she was either called Okaasan or Megumi, she really had no point of reference other than it was a similar situation to her father. She had been able to work out that her sisters name was Ino and little Ino had become her saving grace in all of this. It might have been a little twisted but she looked at Ino as almost like a second chance with Beth. They may have both had the bodies of infants but Quinn still had her mind and she was determined to look after the little girl and to make sure she had a life of happiness. Ino would never have to wonder, like Quinn used to, if her sister hated her. Ino would always know she was loved.

She had even discovered a nifty little trick that helped. She found she was able to manipulate the strange energy within in her, she couldn't tell you how she did it, only that she could. It came as naturally to her as breathing. And she could make it flair up when she wanted to and as long as she didn't push it too hard, doing so near the other girl gave them both a lot of entertainment. Ino just seemed to enjoy it, the warm sensation that it sent out, and Quinn, she just absolutely adored the sound of her sister's laugh that always followed.

She couldn't do it too many times in a row, after a few minutes of causing her energy to pulse she would grow super tired and then she would fall asleep for a couple of hours. It wasn't like a regular nap either, after doing it she always felt like she had run a marathon or something. But as she did it more often it got easier and easier to do it for longer and more often. She figured it was like any kind of exercise, you got better at it the more you did it. Plus every once in a while Ino would return the favor and when Ino's energy washed over her it was like… like her soul was getting a hug.

That description was way more poetic than she would normally try to describe something but she had no idea of how else to describe it, plus it was accurate. Sometimes she could even feel her new parents use this energy and since even Ino flared it once in a while, and she really was just a baby, Quinn didn't think she was doing anything out of the ordinary. It was just something that people here did.

The point was to fit in, to appear normal, so if that meant flaring her energy at times like everyone else then so be it, and if it happened to have the added bonus of making her new sister happy then she saw nothing wrong with doing it a little more often then she might have otherwise. It wasn't like it was hurting her or anyone else and besides, she was stuck in a baby's body, there was literally nothing else for her to do.

She gurgles happily when she hears her new mother say her name. Rin, it was close enough to Quinn in her mind so as far as names went she could live with it. Her mom was currently bouncing her gently in her arms, and it seemed to make her mother happy to do this so Quinn didn't have the heart to try and make her stop, though the motions could make her feel just a little nauseous at times. Her mother was currently talking to a strange blond man in a white jacket and funny hat. Quinn concluded that he must be some kind of friend to the family because when he held his arms out to her, her mother handed her right to him.

He smiles down at her and if Quinn had been older she would have blushed heavily because, holy shit… he was hot. Even the way he talked baby talk at her, which she usually found a little annoying if not tolerable, sounded kind of sexy coming from him.

He smiles up at her mother and speaks to her, and she follows his gaze and she can see her mother's shoulders slump in visible relief, maybe this man was a doctor and he was just confirming that she was completely fine and perfectly normal. It would explain the white coat. But honestly she really had no idea, she was doing her best to pick up the language, and they did say that immersion was the best way to learn a language but this was proving difficult. She was learning from scratch, completely on her own here. She wasn't even old enough to start learning their alphabet yet, so she didn't have anyone to teach her yet either. Basically she was stuck doing her best to try and recognize patterns.

He then meets her gaze with his own and she is mesmerized by his eyes, and he says something to her and even if she understood the language she wasn't sure she would have heard him, she was so lost in his gaze. And then he flared his own energy and in that moment Quinn would swear she touched God. She was well aware of her own energy, she had felt Ino's energy which was a little smaller than hers, she had felt her parent's energy which was far greater. But nothing compared to this man. It was like she had spent her entire life with her world being illuminated only by candles and then suddenly being exposed to the power of the sun.

It was huge and powerful and overwhelming… and good. A force this powerful, as powerful as was coming from this man should be absolutely terrifying. She knew that she was nothing but a little insect in comparison to this man, but she didn't feel that way. The kindness, the warmth that emanated from him was awe inspiring. She began to giggle and laugh and she couldn't help it she flared her own energy right back at him. In the back of her mind she realized she was actually getting high off of this but she didn't care.

She knew good people back in her old life, she had known a couple of genuinely good people. In this new life of hers, she knew her parents were genuinely good people, she could feel it and sense it by their actions and by the energy that was in their bodies, but this man here was so far beyond that. He smiles at her and laughs with her and Quinn fell in love in an instant. This man, whoever he was, was the very best that the world had to offer. If she wasn't so high off of the warmth emanating from this man she would have been depressed that she was way, way, way too young for him. As it was, with how she was feeling right now she didn't know if she would ever be sad again.

He flares his energy three more times after that, and after each time she responds in kind and even when he passes her back to her mother she could still feel his energy, which was a little strange. Contact had always determined whether or not she could feel another person's energy. But now she was hyper aware of all of the energy around her and from every single person, at least within this building. She could just sense it. She couldn't see it she just knew it was there, it flowed through every living thing around her.

This building was full of it. Some of it was large and concentrated, others were small and free flowing. Some of it was happy, some of it was sad, others were excited and others were board. Some of the energy radiated was good and some of it even radiated evil, but no matter where she sensed it from or from who, it all paled in comparison to the man standing in front of her and her mother. She was aware of the other energies but she may as well have been trying to see the stars through the sun.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Megumi sat nervously in front of the fourth Hokage, carefully bouncing Rin in her arms. The past few weeks had been rough. As soon as they got home from the hospital Rin wouldn't stop crying, and it wasn't just upset newborn crying this had been something completely different. She would cry herself into exhaustion only to wake up screaming and start crying all over again. And when she wasn't crying, there was no happy contentment or any of the curiosity they had seen when she came into this world, her eyes just stared out straight ahead, void of any life. She refused to eat, no matter what they tried, and their newborn baby girl was slowly fading away, it was almost as if she wanted to die.

They had no idea of what to do so not even a two days later they had gone right back to the hospital and set Rin up in the pediatric ward. They placed an IV in her to provide her with some nutrients and then had used some of the most advanced medical sealing arrays that she had ever seen to monitor her child, but nothing helped.

Their little girl was wasting away and then one night something had changed, Inoichi got her to start eating, and she stopped crying and from then on she was as happy a baby as they could have ever hoped for and both she and Inoichi had begun to breathe easy again.

But it wasn't to last. Within days Rin had begun to access her Chakra. It wasn't unusual for a baby to flare their Chakra occasionally. In fact doing so was a sign of a healthy baby. Ino flared hers when she was particularly happy or upset. It was normal.

Rin however, did it to the point of Chakra exhaustion. She would continually pulse her Chakra to amuse herself and Ino and then when she ran out she would fall asleep. Her reserves would refill while she slept and then she would wake up and start it all over again.

She and Inoichi were very careful to not act overly alarmed by this. They didn't want to startle Rin, and they certainly didn't want to do anything that might get her to stop eating again, but they were worried. It was unheard of for a baby to actively use their Chakra like Rin was. They had no idea what kind of effect it might have on her, and more worryingly was the fact that they had no idea how the village elders might react if they found out. The Fourth was on their side, but if Rin was made out to be a danger to the village then he would have to act, no matter how much he might not want to.

They had almost lost her once, Megumi couldn't handle the thought of it happening again. They were a family, herself, Inoichi, Ino, and Rin and if even one of them was gone it would break them. Inoichi wanted to keep it quiet just to be safe and Megumi had agreed that it was in Rin's best interest to handle this within the family, until yesterday when she had felt Rin doing it from across the house. She had rushed to the room and laying there happy as clam were Rin and Ino, with Rin's Chakra swirling around them, wisps of it were actually visible. That was dangerous, that could get Rin killed. Inoichi was firm in saying that he would talk it over with Shikaku and Chouza, that they would figure it out but that this needed to stay within the clan. Megumi couldn't take that risk?

Chakra could be a wonderful thing, it could propel a person beyond what they would normally be capable of. You could be faster, or stronger than was humanly possible without it. You could even use it to manipulate the very fabric of reality. Chakra was an amazing thing, but it was a double edged sword and if you weren't careful you could hurt or even kill yourself with it.

Megumi couldn't risk that, Rin was her daughter and she was using a force that she was way too young to comprehend. So while Inoichi was out with Ino picking up some groceries, Megumi had made a request to see the Yondaime who had graciously agreed to meet with her.

And so here she was, sitting in the office of the one man in the village who controlled her daughter's fate. He had been very kind to them, in any other Hidden Village Rin would have been either taken from them or killed, but the fourth had supported them. She was still nervous, but if there was anyone who could help it would be him.

The fourth sat patiently across from her, a polite and pleasant smile on his face as he waited for her to start and so with a deep breath she begins.

"Thank you for agreeing to see me." Megumi begins softly. "Inoichi will be furious that I came but… I didn't know what else to do."

The fourth frowns, "What's wrong?"

Megumi wants to cry, she feels so embarrassed. She was a trained Shinobi for goodness sake, she had made it to the rank of Special Jounin before she had retired, she should be able to keep a better handle on her emotions, but she knew she was radiating tension. She was truly and genuinely afraid in a way that she had never experienced before. Her baby, her daughter, could be putting herself in danger and the only way to help her may be to lose her. The only reason she wasn't crying right now was that she didn't want to startle Rin.

"I… I don't want to lose her, Inoichi wants to keep it quiet but I'm afraid that she might hurt herself, I really, truly, don't know what else to do." Her voice slightly cracking.

The fourth Hokage looks at her sympathetically, "Take a moment okay, stay calm and just tell me what's happened that has you so worried."

"You're aware of how things started off with her correct?"

The Fourth nods.

"When we finally got her eating, when we finally were able to bring her home for good we were so relieved. We love her so much… there is so much we don't know about her but… it doesn't matter because she's our baby. My baby, I carried her, she's mine. How she arrived doesn't matter." She had to make him understand, he had to know just how much Rin meant to them.

"Mrs. Yamanaka, I understand okay, but I can't help you if you won't talk to me." The fourth says gently, his voice laced with sympathy.

Megumi takes a deep breath, "A couple of days after we got her home we noticed something…"

The Fourth nods his head, encouraging her to continue.

"She's been flaring her Chakra…"

The Fourth shrugs, "Baby's will do that." He offers.

"Yes, I know but… not like this. She does it a lot and at will, it's not an emotional response like it is with Ino or other babies she's doing it on purpose."

The Fourth's brows raise in surprise, "Really… well now that is interesting. You're sure it's a conscious effort on her part?"

"Yes, she mostly does it around Ino, they have a… bond, we think that Ino is particularly sensitive to it because of how Rin came into this world. Anyway, it makes Ino laugh which causes Rin to do it again and well, you get the idea."

"What about Chakra exhaustion?" The Fourth asks.

"That's just it, she does it until she tires out, you know before it becomes dangerous, and then she sleeps for a couple of hours and then she's right back to it… I, I originally wasn't going to come here but then… yesterday while she was doing it again, she was using so much of it that I was able to sense her doing it from all the way across the house and when I rushed there to check on her… her Chakra was visible. That's… that's way too much Chakra for a baby to be able to access, it's dangerous isn't it?"

"It is strange, I'll grant you that…" The Hokage has a pensive look on his face before he stands up and walks around his desk over to her, he then smiles at the baby. "What's her name again?"

"Rin." Rin looks up at her mother when she says her name and gurgles happily.

"That's a very nice name, may I hold her?" He asks, holding his arms out for her. Megumi passes her daughter over because what else could she do? When the Hokage made a request, you did it, no matter how much you might not want to. But looking at him at that moment however, she felt some of her concern disappear because looking at him you would never know that he was arguably the most powerful shinobi to have ever lived, because he was grinning down at her daughter with a goofy smile on his face and babbling like an idiot to her in baby talk. She can't help but laugh at the thought of Iwa seeing the great Yellow Flash like this.

"I'd like to test something if that's okay, I promise you that it won't hurt her in the least bit?"

Megumi hesitates, her nerves and fears rushing back in full force, and he must have noticed.

"I swear to you, I will not hurt her and I promise you, no matter what, I'm not going to take your child away from you and I won't let anyone else do it either."

Relief floods through her. Because until he said it, that was a very real possibility, and if it had happened she would never forgive herself. Hearing him promise her that he wouldn't let anyone else take her child from her was like having the weight of the world lifted from her shoulders. She nods her head, giving her consent.

"Hi Rin, I'm Minato and I want to try a little experiment with you, okay? In just a second I'm going to channel just a little bit of my Chakra, just a tiny little bit, and then I want you to copy me, can you do that for me, huh?"

Rin doesn't do anything, she just continues to stare at the man holding her.

The Fourth then proceeds to flare a tiny bit of his Chakra, not even enough to do a simple clone technique, Megumi was a sensor type, like her husband was, but if she hadn't been so nervous, and hyper aware of everything going on around her as a result, even she might not have noticed it. But Rin certainly seemed to and in a moment she was laughing and squealing with delight, and not a moment later she created a pulse of her own chakra. He repeats the process three more times and Rin copies him each time.

The Fourth Hokage beams down at her. "There now, that wasn't so bad, was it?" He then hands her back to Megumi. Rin is still moving and squirming and gurgling away completely happy.

"Is she okay, is she going to be okay?"

The Fourth scratches the back of his head, a little embarrassed. "Well… I'm no doctor, but in my opinion she's going to be just fine."

Megumi pulls Rin to her just a little more closely, a lot of her worries evaporating. "So she's not in any danger?"

"No, not really. I would say that she's just curious. It's not uncontrollable or getting away from her, you were right it's a very conscious effort on her part. But I don't think she would be doing it if she was hurting herself. At this age she's going to be really sensitive to her own Chakra, if it was doing any damage she'd feel it and stop. I would just think of it as early Chakra control exercises… really early, but considering the way we think she was created it might not be that strange. Maybe see if you can find a way to work with her on it. But if you are really worried about it, I can draw up some inhibitor seals for her that won't do any harm to her Chakra development, they'll just limit the access that she has."

"I'll talk it over with Inoichi, but if she's really okay then I don't want to do anything that might stunt her growth. My biggest concern was that I didn't want her to get hurt."

The Fourth nods his head, agreeing with her decision. "Was that all, do you need anything else?" He asks her kindly.

"No, thank you, I just… thank you…"

"Don't mention it."

"Um… Lord Hokage?"

"Yes?"

"How would you go about working with her?"

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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After her mother and she had left the hot guy, her mother seemed to be walking on air. She was playful and cheerful and laughing and Quinn was still riding her high and in such a good mood herself that she played back. Well as much as she could in this body, which mostly consisted of giggling. Still everything was going great and she felt fantastic and her family was happy so really she couldn't complain.

When they got home her mother fed her and then she took Quinn into her and Ino's nursery, where she sat down in the rocking chair and gently moved them back and forth. Her mother then says something else to her and then Quinn feel's her mother's energy pulse, just like the blue eyed man. It wasn't nearly as powerful but it still dwarfed her own energy. And it had a different feel to it than she was used to. Just by feeling the energy she was able to tell things about her mother by how her energy felt. Her mother's energy was gentle but firm, kind and a little reserved. She absolutely loved her, which was a little jarring to know, for reasons that she probably would spend the rest of her life working through. She was also nervous about something, but she wasn't afraid.

But Quinn didn't like the fact that her new mom was nervous about anything so she decided to do for her what she did for Ino and she flared her energy. The brilliant smile on her mother's face showed the absolute removal of whatever was making her nervous.

Her mother then flared her energy three more times in evenly spaced intervals. Quinn was confused, but responded in kind, causing her mother to let out a short little laugh. Quinn was now able to tell that by the feel of her energy that her mother was excited and super happy right now.

Her mother then did it again, slightly changing up the intervals between pulses. And that was when Quinn got it, her mother was trying to play a game with her. The only question was, did she play back? Were they doing this with Ino, had she been using this strange energy too often? In the end she decided to go along with it anyway. It was the closest to a real interaction that she had had in what felt like forever, plus her parents were already aware of her using this energy, if she just stopped then that might raise suspicions, plus it made her mother happy.

They did this a couple more times, each time her mother would slightly vary the pattern and Quinn would be sure to respond in kind. She was actually about to try her own pattern when she realized just how much energy she had been using by doing this and felt the familiar exhaustion that came with using this energy. So with one last little pulse, she fell right asleep.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Time passed slowly but surely for Quinn. She kept a close eye on Ino to establish where she should be developmentally. Whatever Ino was able to do Quinn made sure she was soon to follow. She was currently able and allowed to sit up on her own and give it another week or two and Ino would be crawling, which meant she could crawl too.

It was hard doing this, but keeping an eye on Ino served more than just keeping her families suspicion low, it was also a good judge of what her body was physically capable of. For example, she may know how to walk mentally, but physically her body couldn't handle it. There were things she wanted to do that her body just couldn't physically do yet and Ino was a good measuring stick.

Another thing that was frustrating was the language, she was picking it up, but very, very slowly. Ino seemed to have much better grasp of the language than she did. She was already making sounds, and she seemed to be picking up the rules and patterns of the language easily. She hadn't said a real word yet, but considering how much she liked to babble, Quinn figured it would happen sooner rather than later.

Baby's brains were well equipped to handle learning brand new languages from scratch, and Quinn figured that was where her struggle was coming from. Her brain may be at that stage of development where it just absorbed information like a sponge but her mind was well past that. It had already established and learned a dominant language, so now she was forced to learn this knew language from scratch. Instead of just intuitively knowing that item A was word A, she had to filter it from English into whatever this new language was called. So it became a game of if item A was an apple, and the word they said when they showed it to her was Ringo, then Ringo meant apple… or possibly red. It was very frustrating.

The one thing she knew she had blown in terms of appearing normal was her use of the strange energy, which was apparently called Chakra. Ino used it on occasion as part of a strong emotional reaction and in very short weak bursts. But Quinn had established that she was able to access her Chakra and manipulate it at will. That was well beyond what a normal baby could do apparently, but if she just stopped using it now then it would seem even stranger.

She also had a ton of this Chakra now, not as much as her parents but leaps and bounds more than Ino, Chouji, or Shikamaru, the three other children that she had the most contact with. But her parents seemed excited for her whenever she played the Chakra game with them, which consisted of them pulsing patterns with their Chakra and her copying it, so she figured why not just continue doing it. She was actually trying to figure out how to use it to communicate with her family, because honestly, trying to learn this new language on her own was a giant pain in the ass and it wasn't like she could talk yet anyway.

No, she would continue to develop her skill with using this Chakra stuff, and since Chakra seemed to play an important part in this society, and if she was good at utilizing it, then that would make her family proud of her and then they would continue to love her. Yes she knew that it was a warped way to look at it, but she had been rejected by her family once before, she didn't think she could handle it again.

Her skill at reading and understanding people with Chakra also increased by leaps and bounds. For example she no longer needed to actually be touching someone to sense their Chakra. Within, what she figured was currently a ten to fifteen foot radius she could pinpoint someone's location by their Chakra and she could tell you what kind of mood they were in too. And people she had a connection with, people like her family, that range extended much farther.

That was another thing she had noticed as time passed, her family stopped being her "new" family and just became her family. Her father was just that, her father, not her "new" father, her mother was her mother, not her "new" mother. Ino was her sister. There was no new, or other, or different placed before it anymore. Yeah she sometimes found herself missing her old life, her old friends and even her mom, but she had a good thing going here and she hoped that they would be happy for her, that she had found a family that loved her and that she loved back.

All things considered, Quinn was happy with her life, she was safe and loved and while there were some challenges, life was good and she had no real worries. Until late one night Quinn woke up startled and afraid, they were all in grave danger.


	4. Chapter 3

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Glee. Heads up, I apologize for any spelling and grammar errors. I do my best to catch them, but I'm not always successful.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 3-xXx**

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Quinn woke up with a start. They were all in very real danger. Something or someone was coming… no, they were here, someone with a chakra so evil, so vile, that it was making her physically ill. Her mother, her father, her sister, this entire town that she lived in was in danger, she had to warn them.

But she was paralyzed with fear, she could see visions of her own death washing over her again and again, she was going to die. This evil chakra was coming for her and she was going to die. She hears Ino begin to babble in her own crib, having awoken but oblivious to the danger she was in. So Quinn focuses the best she can and sits up. She looks across the room at tiny helpless Ino, staring back at her and smiling, just happy to see her twin, and so Quinn forces herself to be brave. To fight through this crippling fear she felt. She gathers as much of her chakra as she can and releases it in a massive pulse, all the while she starts screaming and crying as loudly as she can, doing her best to convey even a small portion of the fear and anxiety that she was feeling. Her family was in danger, she needed to warn them, they had to run away.

In a swirl of energy both parents appeared in her room, looking ready for a fight. If she hadn't been so upset she would have been surprised by what they had just done. I mean they had literally teleported out of thin air, right into the room like magic. But in comparison to the evil presence she felt, it didn't matter. Warning them did. When her parents saw her in the state she was in her father rushed over to her, picking her up, while her mother ran over to grab a now crying Ino.

He was rocking her gently in his arms, whispering what might have been comforting words if she had been able to understand him, pulsing his own chakra in familiar patterns in an attempt to calm her down and get her to stop using so much of her own. His chakra was acting as a beacon of safety and peace against an oncoming storm of darkness. But she ignored it, she had to make him understand, they were in danger.

She hears her mother say something to her father, the worry evident in her voice, and Quinn hated herself for it, hated worrying them, hated not being able to warn them, for being so helpless. This vile chakra was here and it wanted to hurt them all, why couldn't they sense it. They could use their chakra so much better than she could, why couldn't they feel this presence. She could feel her chakra rapidly draining, and at this point she would normally fall asleep and rest, but that wasn't an option. She continues to force her current level of output and even when it began to hurt her she didn't stop. Their safety meant more than her pain.

With a large pulse, the entire world shook as she felt another, even more powerful chakra hit her. So powerful, so evil, that it even put the other one to shame. It was so potent that it stopped her crying, from even accessing her chakra, all in a single moment. She was too late. She looks up scared at her father but he's not looking at her, he's staring towards the source of the new chakra, her mother is too.

Good, she wasn't too late, they could run, they could escape and be safe.

Quinn is handed off to her mother and she doesn't understand why. Her parents exchange a couple of words, share a kiss, and then to Quinn horror her father leaves her and her mother and sister. No he needed to stay and they all needed to leave together! She is startled by a loud explosion and Ino begins to cry in earnest. It was the first of what would be many explosion that night.

Soon after the first explosion occurs there is another and then another. Soon the screams of the scared and dying fill the air. Her mother holds the both of them close to her as she takes a spot in the corner of the room. Crying as she rocks them back and forth, whispering softly to them.

Quinn can literally feel the fear pouring from her mother, she wants to do something to comfort her but she can't. She's physically drained, having used up more of her chakra than she ever had before, her insides felt like they were smoldering and her body just wanted to shut down. But she couldn't, if she closed her eyes they would never open again. She felt like she was being crushed under the weight of this evil chakra that filled the night.

If she moved, if she breathed, if she even blinked, whatever was out there would know they were here and it would kill them. The earth rumbles and a terrible roar fills the air. Quinn wondered if this was the end of the world, if this was the night that the universe decided to end all life. There's a giant crash just outside their house and the world shakes with it. Whatever was doing this was right by them.

She can hear men and women shouting, not in fear but in anger, as more explosions fill the air. The evil chakra is so powerful and overwhelming that Quinn struggles to breathe. She gasps for air but it won't come. And suddenly her mother is moving, fast, rushing from their home and into the night

Their home is crashing all around them as her mother leaps high into the air, her and her sister being held protectively in their mother's arms and for a brief moment Quinn catches a glimpse of the monster that is destroying their home. It's as large as a mountain with nine tails waving around it wildly crushing everything in its path. It's entire form glowing sinisterly in the pale moon light. And then it's gone from view, her mother ducking down into a nearby ally way.

She doesn't know where her mother takes them, all she knows is that when they get there its dark and the sounds of other children crying echoes all around them. It feels like an eternity passes, and with each second it grows darker and darker, with no hope of escape. When suddenly Quinn feels it, the warm chakra of the man in the strange hat, and for the first time since being awoken Quinn feels a glimmer of hope. So much so that she reaches over to a crying Ino and grabs her hand, she then looks up at her mother and with the last bit of chakra available to her sends out a little pulse, something to let them know that it would be okay. And as her consciousness finally fades she can feel the warm chakra wash over her and everyone else for a second and then suddenly it and the evil chakra are gone.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Megumi woke with a start, not even sparing a glance at her husband who she felt awaken right beside her, both of them body flicker into their children's bedroom. Rin had just released a massive pulse of her chakra and the scream of terror that followed it made Megumi feel sick inside.

Her babies were in trouble.

When they arrive in the room both Inoichi and herself are ready for combat, ready to annihilate whatever was causing their child to feel this kind of distress. However when they arrive there is no one there. Rin however is screaming her head off, her chakra visibly swirling and pulsing around her, while Ino is crying as well, upset by her sister's distress.

Megumi grabs Ino and manages to calm her down fairly quickly, but Rin is another matter entirely. When Inoichi lifts her up he does everything he can to try and soothe her but it doesn't work, if anything it only serves to upset her more.

"What's wrong with her?" Megumi asks, worried.

"I don't know, but if she doesn't stop using her chakra like this she's going to hurt herself." Inoichi says, both parents watching helplessly as Rin began to show physical signs of chakra exhaustion. She had run out of her reserves and now she was using her life force to create more, if she kept this up she could destroy her own chakra network and eventually kill herself.

"I'm going to get those suppressant seals the fourth gave us," Inoichi says, his voice filled with desperation, "we'll take her to see him tomorrow and-"

Whatever else he was going to say was cut off by a powerful wave of the vilest chakra either of them had ever felt. Rin stops her crying immediately, her chakra disappearing and she lets out a whimper. Suddenly a huge explosion rocks the still night air.

Inoichi moves over to Megumi handing her Rin. "I have to go." Inoichi says as screams of terror from the civilian population fill the air.

"I understand." Megumi chokes back. Whatever was out there was powerful and as a shinobi of the village Inoichi had a duty to defend the village from all threats and she understood that. It didn't mean she had to like it though.

He kisses her as if this will be the last time he will ever see her, and as he pulls away, he keeps his forehead to hers, locking eyes with the love of his life. "I'll come back, to both you and the girls, I swear it."

"I know you will, now go, be safe." And with that Megumi watches as Inoichi vanishes. She shakily stumbles over to the corner of the room and settles down there, trying to be brave for her children, but she doesn't think she's doing too good a job. The sounds of battle fill the air and she can't get Ino to calm down, and as for Rin, her fear seemed to go beyond crying. Her little face is as pale as snow as she grasped onto her shirt as tightly as her little hands could, her entire body shaking.

As she listens to the battle rage on outside she can hear and feel the battle draw closer to her and her family, she stays still hoping the battle will shift away from them. The longer you are a ninja the more refined your sixth sense in battle becomes, the air will just seem to shift and you can just sense when an attack is in coming. Megumi, in that moment, would be forever grateful for her ninja training because as she leaps up from her spot on the floor, the house comes crashing down around her.

She tumbles through the falling debris that was once her home, leaping into the night air, as the tip of a monstrous tail rips through their house as well as a whole line of the surrounding land and buildings. A large gash in the earth left in its wake.

Kyuubi.

The nine-tailed demon fox was destroying their village, their home, it had almost killed her children. She quickly makes her way through the carnage and fighting as more Shinobi flood the area, desperate to hold the beast at bay. She lets out a sigh of relief as she gets herself and her children to one of defensive bunkers throughout the city. But the relief doesn't last long as the sounds of the battle echo even in here.

The battle lasts through the night and when she looks down at her two babies, wondering if they are going to still have a father at the end of the night, she sees Rin reach over and grab Ino's hand with her own. She then lets out a little pulse of chakra, calm as can be as if trying to reassure her sister and mother that everything would be okay. Through the darkness someone in the building lets out a cheer.

"The Fourth Hokage is here, he's arrived!"

Megumi feels it a second later, the chakra signature of a powerful technique taking place. She marvels at the thought that everyone in the village could probably feel it. The Fourth truly was a once in a lifetime shinobi. And then in an instant, the Kyuubi's chakra is gone and a tense silence fall on them for a couple of seconds before shouts and cheers fill the air.

Tears of joy begin to fall down Megumi's face. They were safe, the Fourth had saved them all, he had stopped the Kyuubi from destroying their village. She looks down at her babies, and kisses a fussy Ino who is not happy with all of the noise that is taking place. She then looks to Rin and watches as her sleeping daughter struggles to take in shaky breaths and then it hits her.

Rin had known this was going to happen.

She had been trying to warn them, as impossible as it seemed she had known this attack was coming, had sensed the Kyuubi's chakra before anyone else and had done the best that a baby could do to warn them. But to be able to warn them like that she would either have to have some kind of foreknowledge of the event happening or… Rin was quite possibly an extremely powerful sensor. Many Yamanaka's were sensors, their clan jutsu had shaped and refined their sensor abilities for generations, being a sensor and a Yamanaka often went hand in hand.

And considering the way that Rin had been conceived, a child born from chakra using the DNA of someone who was already predisposed to being a sensor, her sweet girl didn't have a chance. No wonder she used chakra so freely and so easily, she must feel as if she's being bombarded with it.

"Poor girl." Megumi whispers softly as she leans and places a kiss to her other daughter's forehead.

If she was right, if Rin was a sensor who was developing early, then that was good news. There were ways to help her, they wouldn't have to suppress her chakra with seals. They could do more than just work on her control, which in Megumi's opinion was doing just as much harm as it was good. Better control at that age built larger reserves which in turn required more control. She and Inoichi estimated that Rin's reserves were as large now as they should be if she were three or four. That was just too much chakra for a baby. Children shouldn't even be accessing their chakra until five or six, their bodies not having developed enough to handle it properly.

But sensor training was different than chakra control training, if they could work something out with her then she could learn to suppress it naturally, even at this age. She would no longer be bombarded constantly with other people's chakra.

"It's going to be okay baby, everything is going to be just fine, you'll see."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Inoichi felt nothing but panic course through him as he frantically dug through the rubble of what had once been his home.

"Megumi!" He calls out, his voice hoarse. He couldn't sense her, why couldn't he sense her? She wasn't dead, he refused to believe it. But he couldn't sense her or either of the girls.

"Megumi!" No, until he found a body she was alive and well, but as time passed with no sign of any of them he felt himself fall into despair. When the attack had begun he and Shikaku had worked together to relay orders to the Shinobi forces as they fought the beast, having been ordered to buy the Fourth time to set up a technique that could defeat the beast. They had been directing their forces to draw the beast away from downtown Konoha, the most populated part of the village, however their plan had worked too well.

Inoichi had only been able to look on, completely helpless, as the beast trampled the area where he and his family lived. His first instinct had been to rush there instantly, only Shikaku and Chouza calling out to him, reminding him of his duty and of what was at stake had stayed him. He had been forced to trust that Megumi and their daughters had somehow escaped, because the village as whole had needed him. Once the beast was gone however all bets were off, he hadn't waited around for any of the fallout, and had rushed straight home.

But he was starting to lose hope. He had been searching for hours and he hadn't found anything to indicate that his family was okay. There were no bodies, in any other situation that meant that they could still be okay. But he had just spent the night watching men and women under his command get crushed into dust and disintegrated by blasts of chakra right before his eyes. No body, in this situation, meant no hope just as much as finding a dead body would.

"Megumi! Ino! Rin!"

If they were here, if they could just make a sound, he could find them. He sinks to his knees as the hopelessness of the situation comes crushing down. There had been so much death, so much destruction, how foolish was he to think that his family could escape unscathed.

Inoichi begins to cry. "No… please, not them…"

"Inoichi?"

Inoichi looks up and stepping over the rubble towards him is his wife with their two daughters safely in her arms. She looks a little tired, but otherwise completely fine. They smile from across the rubble at each other, the overwhelming relief washing over them as they now know for sure that their entire family has survived the night. They rush to each other and Inoichi gathers his family in his arms.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

It had been three weeks since the attack and Inoichi was standing in the middle of the assembled crowd in front of the Hokage's tower as the Third addressed the village, having officially been reinstated as the Hokage. He had taken command fairly quickly after the Fourth had died but it hadn't been official until yesterday.

Inoichi wasn't sure how he felt about it. He considered the Third to be a good man, and in the face of what had just happened he was the only Shinobi in the village with enough skill and reputation to lead the village and not have them appear any weaker to the other villages than they already did. Kumo was already testing their boarder responses and Iwa was marshaling their forces closer to their borders than they had dared to since the last war.

For the village itself Hiruzen Sarutobi was the best choice for the Konoha. Personally, Inoichi was conflicted. His retirement from the position as the head of their Intelligence division, while officially had been his choice, unofficially it was because the Third couldn't help but hold him partially responsible for the loss of his favorite student and it had made it all but impossible for the Third to ever completely trust him again.

He knew that the Third didn't blame him intellectually, but emotionally the man felt how he felt and he had no more control over it than anyone else did. He couldn't help but see Inoichi as the man who had revealed his prized student, a man he was closer to than his own son, as degenerate scum who was a danger to all those around him.

Inoichi's last investigation as the head of Intelligence had been looking into the disappearance of a young Chūnin. The girl had been the daughter of a friend of a friend and while officially she had been declared a missing-nin her family had been adamant that that wasn't the case. So he had decided to look into it personally. The trail he would follow during the course of that investigation had eventually lead him to Orochimaru.

When he had presented the Third with his information the man had refused to believe it, had been convinced that Inoichi was mistaken. Inoichi had warned him that Orochimaru was right then, even as they spoke, putting some young Chūnin through unspeakable horrors and that this wasn't the first time. Orochimaru had been doing this for years, who knew how many ninja that they had thought turned traitor and fled the village or who Orochimaru had claimed died on mission had been subjected to that man's depravity.

Inoichi had begged the Third to grant him a full squadron of ANBU so that they could put a stop to it, but the Third had refused, had been sure that there was a reasonable explanation for all of it. He wouldn't stand for Inoichi trying to deface the reputation and the character of his favorite student, a man who to everyone else's knowledge was a model Shinobi of Konoha.

However the Third couldn't just ignore his claim. Inoichi had known that he would take it hard and would be reluctant to believe his student was a monster so Inoichi had gone over his head in a manner of speaking and had brought it up during a council meeting. The Hokage, his advisors, the Head of the ANBU division, Shikaku his best friend who was also the newly appointed Jōnin Commander, as well as the various clan heads and civilian governors were all there to witness his testimony that Orochimaru was an enemy of the village. The Hokage may be the head of the village, and the final say on any matter, but he still needed the support of his generals.

Put in that position the Third had no choice but to act, so he had agreed to take a single ANBU unit with him to investigate the matter himself. Inoichi had put his career on the line and had made a bold accusation that one of the shining stars of the village wasn't what he appeared. If Inoichi had been wrong it would have destroyed any credibility he had within the village. Still a part of him had hoped he was wrong.

Unfortunately, he wasn't.

Inoichi had been right and it had destroyed his personal relationship with the Third and by extension his professional. To the Third, Inoichi would always be the man who had taken his prized student from him, and so not long after Inoichi had turned in a letter of resignation and a request to be allowed to retire from the Shinobi forces entirely. His only responsibilities would be those as the head of clan Yamanaka. The Third had readily accepted, eager to be rid of the man who had done his job too well.

Inoichi's actions had also had a farther reaching consequence for the Third. When the Third had said to the village council that he would handle this personally and that Inoichi was mistaken he had also put his reputation on the line. The fact that Orochimaru escaped and that only the Third returned from the encounter alive had shaken the village leadership's faith in him. There began to be talk of the Third growing soft and losing his edge. That maybe he was too old to lead the village anymore and that maybe someone younger should take his place. In the end the Third had no choice but step aside and name a successor.

Inoichi knew it was a little selfish but he wondered what the reinstatement of the Third meant for him personally. He hadn't stayed retired from the Shinobi world completely for very long, with some effort on the Fourth's part as well as Shikaku and Chouza urging him along, he had come out of full retirement and had rejoined the Shinobi forces as an active duty Jōnin once more. He had then been placed under the command of Shikaku where he basically did the same thing for his friend that he did as the head of Intelligence, unofficially becoming the second in command of the Jōnin forces.

It worked well for him. He rarely had any missions outside of the village, he got to work with his best friend, his work days were usually 9 to 5 so he got to spend plenty of time at home with his family. Actually, as far as jobs in the Shinobi ranks went his was pretty ideal. He had an easy life as far as the Shinobi world was concerned and he got to continue to work in a field he loved.

And he did love his job, he loved the spy work and the intelligence gathering aspect of being a ninja. He loved rooting out their enemies secrets and then having that information turned around on them, he got a deep sense of satisfaction from knowing that the information he uncovered could mean the difference between life and death for one of his comrades. The Third wouldn't be so petty as to set him aside, not when his skills were needed so badly right now, but it could make work a little interesting for a while.

He senses the presence of the ANBU well before they make their physical presence known. His little Rin may be some kind of sensor prodigy but her old man was no slouch either.

"What can I do for you?" Inoichi asks, keeping up an appearance of cool and calm.

"Lord Yamanaka, the Hokage wishes to speak with you immediately after he's finished addressing the village. He requests that you await him in his office."

"Now?"

"Yes."

"Very well."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

When Inoichi arrived at the Hokage's office there was already somebody waiting in there that as a rule he kept both his distance from as well as a careful eye on. Danzo Shimura.

"I was told I was meeting with the Hokage, what are you doing here?" Inoichi asks, not even going through the effort of pretending to be polite to the man. After all he had wanted to either take or abort both of his children. That was something that Inoichi would never forgive or forget.

"I know, I too have business with our leader and it just so happens that that business involves you and the child." Danzo responds, perfectly calm. "So I thought it best to speak with him while you were here."

"You are not getting my daughter!" Inoichi snarls.

Danzo glares at him. "This village is in ruins. We are vulnerable to an attack and yet you continue to put your own selfish desires above the needs of this village. That thing is not your daughter no matter how hard you try to delude yourself otherwise. But whatever it is, it was able to foresee the Kyuubi's attack minutes before it happened, nothing and no one else in the village was able to do that. We need to find out how it is able to do this and then utilize it."

Inoichi's glare hardens, how had Danzo known that Rin had sensed the Kyuubi's attack, he had kept that bit of information very close to the vest, the implications of Danzo knowing were not pleasant. Only his wife who had figured it out, Chouza, and Shikaku had known about it.

"Whether you want her or not is irrelevant, you won't have her, besides the Hokage has already-"

"That was the Fourth's decision," Danzo interrupts, "But the Third is a different man, once he hears all there is to know on the issue-"

"He will make the same decision that his successor did." Hiruzen Sarutobi says as he calmly enters the room, followed closely by Shikaku Nara.

"What!? You can't be serious, this thing is not a child to be protected, it's a chakra construct, admittedly a very intricate one but it's no more real than an earth clone or shadow clone!"

Inoichi snapped at hearing that, it was only quick action on Shikaku's part that a fight was avoided. Inoichi had, in the blink of an eye, been halfway through activating his mind crush technique. He was determined that Danzo would never be a threat to his daughter again. Daughter. Not construct, not a clone, certainly not a weapon, but daughter.

However Shikaku had read his friends mood and intention's perfectly and had bound him with his shadow, interrupting the technique. He had also bound Danzo as well, who had been making a counter attack.

"Enough!" The Third shouts. Drawing all attention in the room to himself.

"Inoichi, please calm yourself, I will uphold the Fourth's stance on this, I will not take your daughter from you, be at ease."

"You cannot be serious!" Danzo snarls. It was the first time any of them had ever seen the man truly lose his composure.

However the Third just smiles serenely in the face of the other man's rage. "I am quite serious."

"Sarutobi, that thing is-"

"By all accounts a perfectly normal little girl, who just happens to be developing her skills a little early. Shikaku has brought me up to speed on the situation-"

Here Inoichi sends a glare at his supposed friend, who either doesn't notice or is pretending not to. Knowing Shikaku it was probably the latter.

"-and while I have no doubt that the girl may one day be an asset to this village, it will be as a proud Kunoichi of this village, not as a living weapon, and it will be her and her family's choice."

"You don't understand-"

"I understand perfectly, and I have spoken." The Third interrupts, "Was that all you wished to discuss?"

"What about the boy, Naruto?" Danzo growls.

The Third chuckles. "You won't like how that conversation goes either. Anything else?"

"No… Lord Hokage." Danzo grits out through his teeth.

However the Third doesn't seem to be bothered by it, "Very well then, you are dismissed. Shikaku, release him."

Once Danzo leaves the room Shikaku releases his hold on Inoichi who then proceeds to grab him and slam him against the wall. "You bastard! I trusted you!"

Shikaku holds his hands up in submission. "What you told me was huge, I had a duty to report this kind of thing to the Hokage, but I made it clear, I swear to you, that it didn't change a thing in terms of her standing in the village. She was still under our protection."

"She is my daughter!"

"I know, but I had my duty. The Third needed to know and I promise you, I only told him."

"Then how the hell did that bastard Shimura find out!?"

"How indeed?" The Third interjects. "Please, Inoichi, Shikaku did the right thing in coming to me, you know he did. You know that if your situations were reversed you would have done the same thing. But I promise you, your daughter is in no danger from me, in fact by Shikaku coming to me means that I learned of all of this from him rather than from Shimura. Release him, please. We have much to discuss."

Inoichi slowly lets go of the other man, but his body is still tense. "What's this about, why did you wish to speak to me?"

"You asked how Danzo knew about your daughter, well I'm very curious about that as well. He shouldn't have known about it and I think the fact that he does is very telling, don't you?"

"Root?" Inoichi says, "But, it was disbanded years ago, by you no less."

"I am well aware, and I know that the fourth would never have sanctioned its recreation either. So that means for Danzo to have the knowledge that he does-"

"Root was never disbanded!" Inoichi says, if Danzo was truly running unsanctioned ops from within their own village and they were just now learning of it, the thought was unsettling to say the least.

"Or he's somehow learned to read minds." The Third says dryly.

"I wouldn't put it past him." Shikaku quips.

Inoichi lets out a breath. "What does this have to do with me sir?"

"If someone within our own village was able to do this, someone who, though extreme his methods might be does love this village, then what are our enemies doing? We need information on our enemies, both foreign and domestic, that is why I would like you to retake your position as the Head of Intelligence."

"Me, of course I will but are you sure… no, forgive me, I humbly accept."

The Third smiles sadly at him, "I owe you a very sincere apology, you stopped a monster from hurting the people of this village, people that I had been charged with protecting and failed to do so. My only excuse is that I am, at the end of the day, only human. So I hope that you can forgive me of my actions and that we can start over new."

Inoichi nods resolutely, "Of course Lord Hokage, you can count on me."

"Good, because we have a lot of work to do."

Late into the evening after the meeting with the Third had concluded, Inoichi and Shikaku finally step out of the Third's office. "Are we okay?" Shikaku asks, his voice taking on that overly even tone it had when he was nervous.

Inoichi takes a moment to consider the question. Shikaku had only done his duty, he had been in a tough spot and he had done the best that he could. And the Third was right, in his position, Inoichi probably would have done the same thing. Shikaku had done what he had thought was best not only for the village but possibly for Rin herself. Inoichi could understand and justify all of it intellectually, it was why he never held a grudge against the Third over Orochimaru. But Rin was his daughter and like with the Third it didn't change how he felt.

"Someday… yes, but not today." And with that Inoichi leaves.


	5. Chapter 4

**Standard Disclaimer, I don't own Naruto or Glee. Bit of a time jump here from the last chapter. Any way I hope you all enjoy.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 4-xXx**

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At three years old Quinn was more than happy to toddle along beside her mother through the busy streets. Everything was decorated so beautifully and Quinn loved the fancy Kimonos that everyone was wearing. She was currently in a pretty red one with a white sash, the colors of which reminded her a bit of her old cheerios uniform.

She had so many questions she wanted to ask, not just about the festival, but the world she was now a part of in general. Unfortunately she was still having issues with the language and while she knew it was silly, she always felt a little embarrassed when she had to speak. She was still learning the language, picking it up to the best of her abilities. She understood what was being said most of the time but talking was a lot harder and she tended to stumble over her words, especially when trying to convey complex ideas. Basically she didn't sound like a native speaker and it was a little embarrassing to her, especially when her three year old sister could speak the language better than she could.

Luckily Ino was a little chatterbox, which suited Quinn just fine. She didn't mind being seen as the quiet twin. Ino was currently being carried by their father pointing to anything and everything that caught her eye, asking question after question. Actually it was pretty nice for Quinn, she just had to listen in and she basically got all of her questions answered as well. She had always been quiet, that hadn't changed.

All in all she was just enjoying the evening out with her family. Holding her mother's hand as she walked alongside her to look at all of the booths. She couldn't remember a time something like this had happened in her old life with her old family so she was soaking it all in as much as possible. They were currently in the middle of the New Year's festival. Her first year here it hadn't happened because of the start of some kind of war, and last year she and Ino had been down with the flu, so this was her first time experiencing it.

Quinn stumbles over her feet a little bit, but her mother keeps her standing. _'These wooden shoes are worse than heels.'_ Quinn grumbles internally.

"Do you want me to carry you?" Her mother asks, kneeling down beside her.

Quinn shakes her head no. That first year where she hadn't been able to walk had been frustrating. She hated not being able to go wherever it was that she wanted to. As soon as Ino had begun to take her first steps Quinn had followed soon after and she hadn't stopped walking since. As you get older you forget what it's like to not be able to walk until it feels like you've been doing it all your life, Quinn however was well aware of the absolute freedom that moving of your own accord gave you. She had thought getting her drivers license at sixteen had meant freedom, but that paled in comparison to being able to put one foot in front of the other and just walk.

However she did understand that as the slowest person there, seeing as Ino was currently riding on their father's shoulders, that she was setting a pace that might be a little bit tedious for an adult.

"I too slow?" Quinn strings the words together awkwardly, trying not to cringe. She could understand the language but damn were there nuances to it that she just hadn't grasped yet. She knew what she wanted to say, she knew the words but it was hard to put them together correctly. Ino, who was mentally a three year old had a better grasp of the language than her own adult mind. It was a little bit galling considering all of the effort she put into learning how to speak correctly and it was also extremely humbling.

"Not at all." Her mother says kindly, she stands and then gives her hand an affectionate squeeze as they continue along. They were on their way to the Akimichi's house for a big dinner and then to watch the fireworks.

The Akimichi's were one of two families that her family was really close with, the Nara's being the other. Both families also had two children their age that Quinn had had many a play date with. Chouji Akimichi was a happy, bubbly, and chubby little cutie. Quinn absolutely loved to play with him, not only was his Chakra sweet and sincere but he was just so happy that it was infectious.

Shikamaru was the other one. She had never met a more content child in her entire life. He was more than happy to be left alone to just stare at the clouds. It was a little bit harder to cajole him into playing, but Ino was such a little force of nature that he usually caved to her will and joined them.

As an adult she had always liked watching children play their simple little games. Now that she was a child herself, she had a unique perspective into it that showed her that to the kids, these games were anything but simple. That old cartoon Rugrats didn't seem so far out anymore.

Life was good and Quinn was truly happy. She felt like she had a future here. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do with her life but then again what three year old did? She had plenty of time before that even became an issue so it didn't worry her too much.

Her training with her chakra was going great as well. Ino was still too young to start, but it had been explained to her multiple times that with her larger chakra reserves and her developing sensor abilities it was necessary that she work hard at controlling it.

It had been a bumpy ride getting to the point they were now. To her parents she was still just a toddler, a very intelligent one, Quinn hadn't been as good at holding back and appearing as normal as she would have liked, but she was still only three. It had taken her quite a while to figure out that her parents had been trying to teach her how to suppress her chakra. Something that most children did naturally. Children generally had to be taught how to draw on their chakra but Quinn was the opposite, she had to learn how to put her chakra to rest.

And because she had constantly used it and from such a young age, her reserves were huge. She hadn't truly realized just how much chakra she carried within herself until she had suppressed it fully for the first time. It was like a noisy world was experiencing silence for the first time. In some ways it was nice, for the first time since she had arrived in this world she wasn't feeling bombarded by this energy but in another way it was very unsettling. It was like she had suddenly lost her sight or hearing. She felt vulnerable.

It was getting better. As she learned to suppress her abilities she also learned to control them better. If she wanted to and as long as they didn't suppress their chakra too much she could locate anyone she wanted and get a sense of how they were feeling. And the more familiar she was with a person the more she could sense about them through their chakra. Like if she used her abilities on her parents or her sister, she could tell you if they were happy or sad, frustrated or excited. Really, the more she learned about this strange energy known as chakra the more fascinated she grew with it.

She had seen her parents perform feats of… magic was the only word for it, they had done magic using their chakra. Breathing fire, teleporting, traveling faster than her eyes could see, sticking to walls. They had done all of these things and more using chakra. And the use of chakra was very common, it was a very rare person that she met that couldn't access this strange energy at least to some degree. From the oldest of men and women to young children, only five or six years of age, all of them could use chakra. Quinn found the stuff fascinating and hoped to learn more about it as she got older and maybe even use it and study it in some sort of career when she grew up.

They had to have that here right? A culture that could use chakra the way that her village seemed to, must have jobs and careers that would allow her to study this mystical energy. Who knew, maybe if she studied this stuff long enough she could even learn how she got here in the first place. Chakra was the only explanation she had that explained her rebirth so far.

Quinn looks up and sees the strange Mount Rushmore-esque monument that overlooked their village. She had always been curious about it and now seemed as good a time as any to ask. She tugged on her mother's sleeve.

"Mama?"

"Yes sweetheart?"

"What montain that?" Okay, seriously, she needed to learn to read and get some books or something because even she knew that had come out weird.

"Oh that," Megumi picks Quinn up, holding her so that she could have a slightly better view of the mountain. "Well _that mountain_ is the Hokage's Monument."

"Ho… Ka… Gi…?" Quinn tests the strange word out on her tongue.

"Ho, Ka, Ge." Megumi corrects gently, both she and Inoichi were aware that Rin had a bit of speaking problem and was a little bit embarrassed by it, so they always made sure to be very careful but consistent in correcting Rin whenever she was learning a new word or trying to speak.

"Hokage?"

"Hokage, that's right, good girl."

"Hokage, what that is?" Rin tilts her head inquisitively.

"The Hokage is the most powerful ninja in the whole village and he's the one who leads us."

Ninja, it was a word that Quinn had heard quite often but she hadn't yet been able to quite pin down what it was. What she had been able to work out was that ninja was a kind of catch all term for people who worked for the village, not just in the village. Like a vendor on the street was not a ninja, but she knew that her father, who worked for the village was.

Megumi then grabs her hand and has her point to the first face on the monument.

"That is the Shodaime, the First Hokage, he is the one who founded Konoha and he even used his powerful Ninjutsu to create the forest and the trees that surround our village today."

Quinn smiles at that. That was a nifty little legend to learn. So the first face was of Konoha's founder. Kind of like their George Washington. She loved learning about her new home as it always made her feel just a little more connected to it and a little less like an intruder.

Megumi then moves Quinn's hand slightly to the right so that it's pointing to the next face. "That is the Nidaime, the Second Hokage. He was the younger brother of the First Hokage and he was the one who organized the village into what it is today."

Alright so the second face was their second leader and he basically set up the village's government. Good to know.

Her mother then moved her hand so she was pointing to the third face. "That is the Sandaime, the Third Hokage. He leads the village today. It's because of him that our village continues to stand strong in spite of all the tragedies we've endured."

She then moves Quinn's hand to point at the final face on the mountain. "That… that is the Yondaime, the Fourth Hokage. He died to save us all…" Even two years later the memories of the Kyuubi's attack were still strong in most people's minds.

"It's okay mama." Quinn says, trying to comfort her mother. Quinn could literally feel the sadness bleeding through her mother's chakra when she talked about the fourth.

"Thank you sweetheart." Her mother says with a smile, placing a kiss on her forehead. "Do you want me to keep carrying you?"

Not really, but she figured her mother would appreciate the closeness so she just nods her head, and does a little pulse of her chakra to try and mix her good feelings in with her mother's sad ones. It was basically a more refined version of what she had done since she had first started using her chakra. Her mother doesn't say anything but she does pull her a little bit closer.

They arrive at the Akimichi's place where Quinn is forced to endure the standard children pass around. Aren't you getting so big? Such a pretty dress. Oh, look at that face. Cheek pinch. Awkward strange old person who you don't know kiss to the cheek. Aaaaand finally back to her mother.

She is dropped off in the back where Yoshino Nara, Shikamaru's mother, had been roped into watching the kids. "Hello Ino, hello Rin, are you both excited for the fireworks tonight?"

"Yes! Daddy said they're going to be big and colorful and loud and pretty!"

Her Aunt Yoshino laughs pleasantly at Ino's enthusiasm.

"And what about you Rin, are you as excited as your sister?"

"Yes, ma'am." Quinn answers politely. After all, who didn't enjoy fireworks?

Aunt Yoshino smiles and takes both girls by the hand and leads them over to a table where Shikamaru, Chouji, and a couple of other children were all playing with various arts and crafts. Colored paper, crayons, safety scissors, glitter and glue. Basically everything a kid could dream of and would be a nightmare for the adults to clean up was there. Quinn didn't envy Yoshino. Ino had declared right away that she was going to make a giant flower and got right to work on it reaching for as much glitter as was within her grasp.

Quinn however quietly took her seat and grabbed a blank sheet of paper and a nearby crayon and like she had done so much back in high school, began to doodle whatever came to mind. It was meant to be fairly mindless, just something to keep her occupied until it was time for dinner, but almost against her will it turned into something more.

First she drew Brittany and Santana, standing together happy. Then she found herself drawing Rachel who ended up holding Beth, the two of them singing. Then she drew Mercedes, followed by her mother, and before Quinn knew it she had filled the page with every important person in her previous life, all of them happy. All that was left was a small blank space in the middle just large enough that if she wanted to she could draw herself in there. But as she went to do that she paused. She couldn't quite remember what she used to look like, and as she examined the drawing closer she realized that the people on there didn't look quite like she remembered them either.

It just hit her, hard, that life was over. She had already known that but for some reason this cemented it for her. So instead of drawing her face in the middle she drew a small grave stone on a hill, and on it was her old name, Quinn Fabray. The picture was probably fitting and accurate to how she had left things. There she was, dead, and everyone around her was happy. She wondered how long it would take her to screw up this life as well.

She is startled when she feels arms wrap around her in a hug. She looks to her side and sees that Ino, who is covered head to toe in glitter, has abandoned her art project in favor of her sister.

"Don't be sad Rin," Ino says very sincerely, "We get to see the fireworks tonight."

Ino watches as Rin forces a smile onto her face and nods her head, but she still doesn't let go instead she hugs her tighter. Not knowing why her sister was sad, only knowing that she was. And since she was the big sister it was her job to make Rin happy again.

Ino looked at the picture her sister had drawn. It was really really good, but for some reason it made her sister sad. That settled it in Ino's mind, Rin was no longer allowed to draw. Drawing made her sister sad so she was going to sit here with her and make a flower instead. Flowers made Ino happy, therefore flowers would make Rin happy.

"Here." Ino said sliding Rin the mostly finished purple flower that she had been working on. "You work on this one and I'll make a new pink one, okay?"

Rin gives her a real smile, "Okay."

For the rest of the evening Ino stuck to her like glue. Talking about anything that popped into her little mind, making sure that Quinn made her flowers the correct way, using the appropriate amount of glitter, which meant most of it, that she cut the leaves in the right shape, and of course going on and on about the upcoming fireworks.

Quinn would never be able to properly put into words what that meant to her. Quinn Fabray was gone, it was time to put her to rest, she had been holding onto that part of her and she needed to let go. She kept thinking of this as her new world, her new life. In her mind she still called herself Quinn. It needed to stop, she needed to embrace this world of hers. Quinn died in a car crash three years ago and was reborn into this world. A world where she had been blessed with a family that wanted her and a sister who loved her. Quinn Fabray was dead… but Rin Yamanaka was here to stay.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Inoichi and Megumi exchanged an amused glance as they watched their two girls look up at the fireworks, completely mesmerized by them. All evening Ino had stuck by Rin's side, her forceful personality coming through as she basically decided on everything that the two of them would do. But Rin didn't seem to mind, in fact she seemed happier than ever to just follow Ino around. Whatever event had blessed them with a second child, they were grateful for the result, grateful that they got to watch their little girls growing up to be not only sisters but friends.

It was strange for them as they watched the fireworks surrounded by friends and family. Everything seemed so peaceful, you would never have guessed that there was a war raging on out there between two of the five great villages. Iwa had only shored up their defenses, but Kumo had finally started a war. The two nations that had once acted as buffer between Lightning and Fire were now wastelands covered in trenches as the two warring nations put all of their military might into their war efforts.

It wasn't a war just between ninja villages, the Daimyos of both Fire and Lightning had raised massive armies. Luckily the rest of the world didn't want to get involved, a war was bad enough, but a fourth Shinobi World War was to be avoided at all costs. Not even Iwa, a nation that hated them had joined in on the fight, however Suna their closest allies hadn't joined in either. As for the hidden Mist village, they were in the middle of a civil war themselves and in no position to fight anybody, and the smaller villages didn't want to be drawn into yet another war.

No the rest of the world was more than content to allow the two giants to go down killing each other. Inoichi couldn't blame them. For over two years now they had fought to a standstill neither side able to gain any significant advantage over the other. Something big would have to happen in order to change that.

Inoichi dismisses thoughts of the war from his mind. The war would still be there tomorrow, all the pain, all the killing, it would be waiting for him tomorrow. It wouldn't just stop overnight. They weren't that lucky. So he needed to make the most out of this moment, the here and the now with his two girls. He needed to take this moment to recharge and to remember what it was they were fighting for.

As Inoichi watched his girls enjoy the fireworks he sees Rin turn her attention away from the fireworks to look behind him, her face scrunches up in worry, like something was wrong but she couldn't place it. Inoichi follows her gaze and he senses it. It's brief, almost untraceable but it's there, killing intent. It was all the warning Inoichi needed. He acted in less than the blink of an eye, overwhelming the first assassin's mind and taking control of his body. Two more charged towards Shikaku, weapons drawn, but it was too late, their cover had been blown.

The adults sprang into action. Megumi went and grabbed both Ino and Rin while the other mothers did the same thing with their children and quickly moved them away and to safety. The rest of the adults quickly overwhelmed the two other attackers killing them quickly before searching the area for any other would be assassins, all of them on high alert and ready for another fight.

Inoichi walked over to Shikaku and Chouza in complete control of the attacker's body, while his two former teammates now stood guard over his own.

"So… who is my would be assassin?" Shikaku asks, his voice tinged with annoyance.

Inoichi takes a second to rifle through the man's mind. "Kumo, jōnin… high jōnin, sent here with orders to kill you… and… His defenses are up I'll need some time to break him to get anything more out of him."

Inoichi then reaches into his mouth and removes a suicide capsule. "There, if you want to bind him I can return to my body and we can get to work."

Shikaku nods his head and Inoichi closes his eyes, and when he opens them again he is back in his own body, Chouza helping him to stand. "You acted fast there, Inoichi. None of would have sensed him until it was too late. I guess we're getting rusty." Chouza laughs. "It's a good thing you aren't."

"Yeah." Inoichi agrees, but the thing was he hadn't sensed him. Rin had. Her abilities were progressing at an astonishing rate, she had been able to sense the assassins presence where an area full of Jōnin level ninja couldn't, and that wasn't even considering all the others they would have had to evade to make it this far into the village to even make this attack.

A young chūnin by the name of Kento appears from the shadows and lands in front of him kneeling, Kento was another member of the Yamanaka clan and was his second or third cousin, he couldn't quite remember. "Inoichi, sir."

"Report." Inoichi orders.

"We found two others but were unable to get to them in time, no injuries on anyone from our side but the two of them managed to commit suicide before we could stop them."

"Very well, keep searching to be sure and then work in tandem with Chouza and his forces to set up guard patrols."

"Yes sir."

Chouza sighs, "One night of peace, is that too much to ask?" He says looking to his friends, before shrugging his shoulders and getting to work.

"Shall we get started?" Inoichi asks.

"Ugh, what a drag." Shikaku says as they begin to move the prisoner to a more secure location. The man struggling uselessly against Shikaku's shadows that had him firmly wrapped in their embrace. "Why was I even the target, if they've gone through all of this effort to get this guy and his team in here then why not go after, I don't know, the Hokage?"

"You are the Jōnin Commander and our lead strategist in the war, if they take you out our forces would be in a world of hurt." Inoichi offers, amused by the fact that his friend wasn't so much angry about the attack as he was annoyed that it interrupted his break.

"I knew I should have turned down this damn promotion." Shikaku mutters under his breath.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

It was two days later before Inoichi returned home late at night. Megumi goes up to him and embraces him and then begins to kiss him. "What happened, can you share?" She asks after a few minutes of getting reacquainted with her husband.

"No, but I will anyway." Inoichi says. "We got lucky. Pure and simple, it was a mission authorized by the Raikage himself. He and his team were to assassinate Shikaku and then kill themselves, it was a suicide mission, none of them were to survive. That fact that we managed to capture him… the amount of information on their forces we managed to gather is staggering. We've learned more in these past two days than we have all last year. The Hokage and his advisors are already using the information we've gained to plan a huge offensive that will turn this war in our favor. Troop positions, mission plans, key personnel, we have it all. The men selected to carry this mission out were not low level troops. We even managed to root out two spies in our village… I just… we got lucky, if…" Inoichi's voice drops to a low whisper.

"If Rin hadn't been there I have no idea what would have happened. None of us would have sensed the attack until it was too late. Speaking of, how are the girls?"

"Ino just really misses her daddy, but Rin's been pretty upset and withdrawn since it happened, I've tried talking with her about it but…" Megumi trails off with a worried look.

"I really wish they hadn't been exposed to this kind of thing so early, it's bad enough that they'll ever have to deal with it at all but I at least wanted them protected from it until they were older."

"This isn't your fault, it's the world we live in."

"I know… but they're my daughters, it's my job to protect them… they're probably asleep by now aren't they?"

Megumi nods, "Yes, I put them to bed a couple of hours ago."

"Daddy?"

Both parents look to see Ino and Rin standing in the hallway looking in at them. Ino giggles happily, "Rin said you were home and she was right!" She rushes over to him and he kneels down to her level as she leaps into his arms. "I missed you! Where did you go?"

"Hi princess, Daddy had to work, I'm sorry I had to be gone for so long."

"It's okay, mommy told us you had really important things to do. I'm just glad you're back."

Inoichi gives his eldest daughter a kiss, he then looks over to Rin who is still standing over by the door, fidgeting nervously.

"Hey sweetheart, I missed you, can you come give your daddy a hug?" He asks.

"You okay?" Rin asks, her voice is tiny and scared.

He nods, "Yes, daddy is just fine." Rin races to him like a shot and is soon holding onto him crying.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry-" She cries repeatedly into his shoulder.

"Oh sweetheart, why are you sorry? What's wrong?" He asks.

"I- He- he, he want kill and then, I knowed- I- I- um-"

"Shh," Inoichi interrupts softly. "You need to calm down, okay. Just take a breath and gather your thoughts alright, take your time."

Rin nods her head. "I know he was there. I… my chakra could feel him. I know he not the friend, chakra was cold, anger. But not feel dangerous, not until…"

"Until he attacked." Inoichi finishes for her.

Rin nods her head. "I speak earlier, my fault, dead." She finishes with tears continuing to stream down her face.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

The guilt had been eating at her constantly. She had felt unfriendly chakra sources near them but she had been so swept up in everything that she ignored it. And that's all they were really, unfriendly, she had felt worse chakra since being here so it just didn't register to her that it was something to worry about. They hovered around the area but they never came any closer so she just ignored it.

It wasn't until the fireworks had been in full swing that the chakra sources began to move, they were rapidly approaching and she could feel that they wanted to hurt them. So she had turned to look, but she was too slow on the uptake, and before she could even think to warn anyone she was being swept up in her mother's arms and being carried away, but not before she watched her father collapse to the ground like a ragdoll and then saw as one of the new chakra sources got his head cut off and the other one cut in half.

It was the second time she had failed to warn her family of danger. The first time she could probably be excused, after all her body had been that of a baby and she had no real way to communicate with them, but this time, this time there was no excuse. She had just been too slow and now someone was dead and her father had collapsed, and until she saw him with her own eyes she couldn't believe he was okay no matter what her mother had said.

The entire thing made was gnawing at her constantly, making her head spin and her stomach upset. This was all her fault. She should have spoken up earlier and now her father hadn't been home in two days. Her mother said he was fine and she could still sense him, but it was faint like something was trying to block him from her and she couldn't get a good read on his emotions, and again the last time she had seen him it had been him just collapsing to the ground.

So when she had felt him arrive she had woken up Ino to tell her that he was home and then they had gone downstairs to see him. Ino had run up to him instantly but Quinn had stayed back. He looked so tired, like he hadn't slept in days, and while he seemed okay and he seemed happy and even relieved, Quinn didn't trust herself to go over there. This was her fault, he had disappeared and two men were dead and it was her fault.

But when she had asked him if he was okay and he had said he was, she couldn't help it, she had run right to him and hugged him for all she was worth. She had to tell him the truth, tell him how sorry she was that she didn't say something sooner. So she did, or at least tried to. There was so much to say and so much she still didn't know how to, that it all came out as a jumbled mess.

"I- He- he, he want kill and then, I knowed- I- I- um-"

"Shh," her father interrupts softly. "You need to calm down, okay. Just take a breath and gather your thoughts alright, take your time."

She nods her head. "I know he was there. I… my chakra could feel him. I know he not the friend, chakra was cold, anger. But not feel dangerous, not until…"

"Until he attacked." He finishes for her.

Rin nods her head. "I speak earlier, my fault, dead." She finishes with tears continuing to stream down her face.

"Oh honey, no, how could you think that?" Her mother asks, kneeling down next to her as she continued to cry into her father's shoulder.

"I saw him, he dead. I- I- too slow and-"

"Sweetheart, it was not your fault, not at all. In fact you saved a lot of lives."

"But-"

"Rin, I need you to listen to me," Inoichi interrupts, gently but firmly. "Those men who attacked wanted to hurt your Uncle Shikaku, if you hadn't noticed them when you did he might not be here today, you saved his life. Because of you we were able to not only stop him from hurting Uncle Shikaku but also a lot of other people."

Quinn shakes her head, trying to wrap her mind around that. So were those men like terrorists, was her Uncle Shikaku some kind of police officer or something? She was still so confused but she wasn't sure how to ask for clarification so she brought up another issue. "You fell…"

"I was just using one of our clan techniques to capture him, I was perfectly fine… but you didn't know that did you?" Her father asks.

She shakes her head no.

"I was using a very special technique, one that has been in our family for generations, and it's one that someday I'm going to teach to you and Ino. I promise you, it might have seemed scary but it's perfectly safe as long as you do it right, okay?"

"I saw two men, dead, they dead and I…"

"I'm so sorry you had to see that, especially at your age." Her mother and father exchange glances before her father fixes his gaze on her and Ino.

"Ino, Rin, I think it's time we explained the world we live in and what it is that I do."

Both she and Ino held their father's gaze, Ino out of genuine curiosity, but Quinn had a feeling that she was about to receive the missing puzzle piece in figuring out this new world of hers. But instead of feeling excitement or relief, she felt an overwhelming sense of dread. She had just witnessed two men try to kill someone she knew and then get killed for their effort, and yet the only issue her parents had with the whole thing was how young she was, not that she had been exposed at all. Whatever she was about to learn would not be good.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Ninja. A word she had heard used repeatedly in this world but never truly had defined until now. Her home was Konoha, one of the five great villages, each one containing their own army of ninja. Ninja's were soldiers, killers, assassins, spies, medics, negotiators, and whatever else was required of them all rolled into one.

Here at the age of five, you entered the academy and from there you were trained in the basics of how to serve your village. You were taught to utilize the chakra within you and use it as a weapon. It was a cultural norm here, something to aspire to and work towards but all Quinn could see was children soldiers. Children like her Ino were going to be trained to kill whoever was deemed necessary to die. She felt sick inside.

She guessed in some ways it was no different than back in her first world when someone joined the military. But even then, you had to be an adult to join. You didn't go in wide eyed with fairy tales of glory running amok in your head. You knew what you were signing up for and what you may be asked to do. To kill or even die. But you were an adult, it was your choice, Ino was just a child she didn't have a choice. And soon she was about to be thrust into a world where having people want to kill you was considered just a part of the job, and she had no idea. It was normal. It was wrong in so many ways, but here it was normal.

She had to laugh at herself. It was a humorless laugh, but still in the back of her mind she had to laugh. She had wondered if this place had a job that would allow her to study chakra, well apparently it did, if this wasn't the biggest fucking case of be careful what you wish for then she didn't know what was. She didn't want to be a ninja, she didn't want to be around the kind of violence she had only just experienced two days ago ever again. But she didn't know what choice she had. Her father had explained to both herself and Ino that the Yamanaka's were a clan of ninja whose history dated back centuries. It was a history that he was proud of and that they should be too. But all Quinn could see throughout all of this was Ino's hands soon to be covered in blood, Ino's dead eyes staring out into nothing. Ino dead.

It was insane. She didn't have it in her, she knew she didn't and yet… Ino. She had seen the way that Ino's eyes lit up when their father talked. How the idea of becoming a ninja, just like their father was and mother had been, seemed wonderful and romantic. Quinn couldn't let Ino face that kind of world alone, but… the thought of becoming one made her feel sick inside.

The academy accepted students when they turned five. That meant she had a little less than two years to try and convince Ino that being literally anything other than a ninja was a good idea.

"Rin?" She heard Ino whisper into the silence of their dark room.

"Yes?" Quinn says as she rolls over to look at her sister who was staring at her from her own bed. Her eyes bright with life and energy.

"Let's work really hard okay. We're going to be the best ninja's in the whole world, it's a promise." And with that Ino rolled back over and was soon asleep.

Quinn couldn't even pretend to smile, she wanted to throw up.


	6. Chapter 5

**Once again, I own neither Glee nor Naruto. Another bit of a time skip in this chapter.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 5-xXx**

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Her choice had been made. She was joining the academy and she would become a ninja. For the past two years she had done her very best to convince Ino to look at other options, but her sister would not be swayed. After that night it was as if a flip had been switched in her sister and every other child in the village. All Ino wanted to do was play ninja and soon that was all Chouji and Shikamaru wanted to do. Even at home, it was all Ino ever talked about. She was constantly asking questions, begging their parents to tell them stories about what it was like. About different things they had done, about missions and clients and battles, and her parents were more than happy to share with them.

Quinn was sure that they toned their stories down quite a bit for them, but Quinn had an adult's mind and could read between the lines. Being a ninja was a death sentence for all but a lucky few. Everywhere she looked she was surrounded by this singular concept. Ninja. A soldier who fought for the village. Who died for the village. Who killed for the village. Who was destroyed for the village. No matter how hard she tried she couldn't escape it. The one shining light in this whole Ninja mess was that she had been right about her parents at least, she had talked to them and knew they would have supported her is she decided she wasn't going to do it.

 _"Mama, may I speak to you?" Quinn asked nervously, as she stepped into the kitchen where her mother was preparing dinner._

 _"Of course, what's on your mind?" Megumi asks as she sets down her knife and the vegetable she had been cutting._

 _"I… It's about becoming a ninja…?" Quinn trails off nervously._

 _Her mother smiles warmly at her and takes a seat at the kitchen table, and motions for her to come to her. When Quinn is standing in front of her, her mother picks her up and places her on her lap. "Now, what about becoming a ninja?"_

 _"I… I don't, the thing is… I don't know if I want to be a ninja." Quinn finishes softly, nervous about how her mother might react. One of her biggest fears was letting her family down and them not loving her anymore. That had been how it was in the Fabray family, love was conditional upon how good you made the family look. The Yamanaka's were nothing like that but the fact was it was still something she was very much afraid of._

 _Her mother is silent for a couple of seconds and Quinn worries that she may have really made her angry, but when she speaks her voice is full of understanding. "You've always been a very sensitive child, always very in tune to the people around you. You've always gone out of your way to try and make people feel better and to do good. You used to spend hours as a baby making Ino laugh, did you know that?"_

 _Quinn did, but she shakes her head no because she shouldn't know that and she was enough of a freak as it was._

 _"I think that's why your abilities are so strong, you just tune into how people are feeling and you want to make them feel better. Being a ninja is… hard, harder than you can imagine. It can bring a lot of joy and pride into your life but… it isn't for everyone. As a ninja you will be asked to do very difficult things… very hard things will be asked of you and happy endings are few and far between. If you become a ninja you have to commit to it fully, if you don't put your heart and soul into it then you can get hurt and you can get those around you hurt. I'm really proud of you for seriously considering this."_

 _"You wouldn't hate me if I don't become one?" Quinn enquires even more nervously, "Will daddy?"_

 _The look in Megumi's eyes grows very serious. "You are our daughter, we will love you no matter what. Never, and I mean never, doubt that. If you decide that being a ninja isn't right for you that won't change how your father and I feel about you even a tiny little bit. Okay?"_

 _Quinn nods her head, choked up. Even after all of this time it was still hard for her to accept that she had parents that loved her unconditionally._

 _"I will say this though. If you do decided to become a ninja, I think you'd be really great at it. You are so very smart and you pick things up really easy and you work hard. I mean just think about how much your speaking has improved this past year. I think that if you did become a ninja you could do a lot of good in the world. But if you decide it isn't for you, then I still think you have so much to offer this world, just in a different way. You have to decide what is right for you, you have to decide the path that you will follow in this life. I know that it seems like that's a lot of pressure to place on your shoulders especially when you are so young but you aren't alone okay. Whatever you decide, your father and I will both be there to support you."_

 _Quinn nods her head. "How long do I have to decide?"_

 _"You have as much time as you need. You need to know with one hundred percent surety that being a ninja is what you want. If you can't say that, if you don't know that becoming a ninja is the right path for you, know it with every fiber of your being, then don't become one. There are other options, we can set you up at the civilian school and that will be the end of it. Okay?"_

 _"Okay… thank you for… you know…" Quinn trails off._

 _Her mother hugs her tightly and kisses her on the forehead. "I love you. Now, go play, and I'll call you when dinner is ready."_

Later that night her father had pulled her aside and basically told her the same thing. That whatever path she chose they would love and support her. Quinn could say with absolute surety that she did not want to be a ninja. Everything in her mind, heart, body, and soul told her not to. It didn't matter. Because far stronger than her desire to not be a ninja was her need to protect her sister.

Her sister knew she wanted to be a ninja, knew it with the same resolve that Quinn knew that she didn't want to be one. But Ino was entering a dangerous world, one that there was no leaving it unscathed so Quinn would follow her. She would follow Ino into this hell and she would protect her. She would become the monster she was afraid of becoming so that Ino wouldn't have to.

There would be no holding back. If she was going to do this, she was going to give it everything she had. She was going to be the very best at it, because second best just meant dead. Any attention that drew to her didn't matter. What mattered was being strong enough to protect her sister. They were about to enter a world where a single tiny mistake could get them killed, that meant that Quinn no longer had the luxury of making mistakes. Perfection or death. There was nothing in-between. Perhaps spending eighteen years as a Fabray did have its upside, this was a mentality that she was used to.

For two years she had tried to get Ino to want to be something else. A singer, an actress, a doctor, a shop owner, a chef, but it did no good. Ino was determined that they were going to be ninja. So with only a week until school started Quinn took a deep breath and knocked on her parent's door. It was time to tell them about her decision. She always had a hard time actually committing to a plan but once she came to a decision she was able to focus in on it and get it done. But she needed to act now before her courage failed her.

There was a muffled groan and she heard her father's sleepy voice echo through the dark. "C'm in. Hey sweetheart what are you doing up?" He asks as she steps into the room.

Her mother sits up in the bed as well. "Are you okay sweetie, did you have a nightmare?" She asks.

No, but she felt like she was living one. Quinn shakes her head no. "I'm sorry that it's so late, but I've been thinking about this a lot lately and it couldn't wait."

"What is it?" Her father asks, taking her very seriously even though it was almost two in the morning. She knew she had really lucked out in the parents department when she came to this world, it wasn't fair to them that they had someone like her for a daughter. They deserved to know, they treated her so well and she was lying to them, it made her feel sick inside but she was too much of a coward to ever tell them the truth about herself.

"I've decided that I'm going to be a ninja. I would like you to sign me up for the academy with Ino." Quinn tells them seriously, actually a little surprised that her voice didn't waver.

"I thought you didn't want to be a ninja sweetheart, what changed your mind." Her mother asks.

"I… you told me not to become one unless I was one hundred percent sure that it's what I wanted and ever since then I haven't stopped thinking about it. I don't know that I want to be a ninja but I can feel it, really deep inside of me that it's what I have to do."

Her parents exchange glances. "Rin, you know you don't have to if you don't want to. Your mother and I will love you no matter what you decide to do. If you're doing this because we've pressured you to in anyway then please reconsider."

Quinn shakes her head. "It's not that, you both have been so great about this. I know what it means to this family to be a ninja, heck, what it means to this village, and considering our family history you would have had every right to try and force this on me but you didn't. You were willing to let me choose my own path, and… and I love you both so much. I have to do this. So please, could we sign me up at the academy tomorrow? It's not too late is it?"

Her father shakes his head. "No, it's not too late, and if you're sure then of course we'll take care of it tomorrow. But are you sure, one hundred percent sure, once you start down this road, it won't be easy to turn back."

"I'm sure."

Her mother motions for her to come to her which Quinn obediently does. "I am so very proud of the way you thought this through. I know this can't have been an easy choice and that this is something you've struggled with for a while. You are going to be so great sweetheart." Her mother says as she wraps her arms around her daughter.

"You're mother's right and this thoughtfulness that you've shown while you came to this decision will serve you well as you train." Inoichi says as he gets out of bed. "C'mon you, I know you're getting big but you're not too old for me to tuck you in are you?" He asks as he lifts her up and begins to carry her out of the room.

Quinn shakes her head no.

It was done, her path was set. Next week she would join her sister in the academy and train to become a ninja. She says goodnight to her father as he tucks her in and kisses her goodnight. And when the door closes she falls into an uneasy sleep.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Quinn had to fight to keep from crying. She would give anything to not be here right now. To be home safe with her family, with her parents and her sister. Instead she was in the middle of a room, standing next to Ino and surrounded by other children as they started their first day of the academy. There were various ninja, Mostly chūnin, but a couple of jōnin as well, surrounding them all as the Hokage stood at the head of the room at a pulpit welcoming them to the academy. Telling them what a pleasure it was to see their smiling and excited faces and other such nonsense.

Quinn really couldn't say because she was tuning him out. Pretty it up all you like, wrap it up in Nationalistic bullshit, it didn't matter. No matter how you looked at it, at the end of the day you were training children soldiers. You were setting five and six year olds on a path to kill. Call it necessary, call it noble and honorable, give it a pretty name like the _"Will of Fire."_ Whatever, it didn't matter to her, she saw it for what it was and it made her sick inside.

As the Hokage steps down and another person takes his place Quinn reaches over and grasps Ino's hand. Ino turns to look at her beaming but Quinn can't muster up even a little smile to return. She just needed to know that her sister was okay, that she was here and real.

"It's going to be great Rin, you'll see." Ino whispers to her confidently. Ino knew that her sister had doubts about doing this, had almost decided not to come with her to the academy but she was glad that she did. She knew her sister was nervous about becoming a ninja but she didn't have to be because she had her as a big sister. Rin was the baby, she was sweet and sensitive and she needed to be looked after. And as the older sister she would look after Rin no matter what.

Not long after the Hokage finished speaking various chūnin began to call out names, and the different children in the room lined up in front of the chūnin who called out their name. Ino's name is called out before hers and with one last squeeze let's go of her hand and moves over to the line headed by a brown haired chūnin with a prominent scar across his nose. Not a second later Quinn's heart rate goes back down to normal when her own name is called out by the same man.

Ino is grinning from ear to ear now that she knows she gets to be in the same class as her sister and Quinn gives her a smile in return. They hadn't split them up, this was a good start. It seemed that Rin was the last person assigned to this group, so they followed the man down the hall and into a classroom marked 1-A. Quinn counted thirty six of them total.

The room is set up a bit like an auditorium with each level containing desks that had enough room for two people each. The base of the room was fairly spacious and empty. Along the wall facing the students was a large chalkboard and off to the side was a neat and orderly desk that was obviously their teacher's.

"Alright class, my name is Umino Iruka, and I will be your homeroom instructor for the duration of your time here at the academy. You may call me Iruka-sensei. As long as you are willing to work hard I am sure that each of you will become a splendid shinobi or kunoichi in your own right. I look forward to working with and getting to know each of you. Now go ahead and find your seats and we will begin."

"Come on!" Ino says happily as she grabs Quinn's hand and pulls her to a spot near the top.

"Okay. Here we go." She whispers quietly and more to herself than anything but Ino had heard her anyway.

"That's the spirit!"

Quinn takes her seat next to her sister and begins to fish out her notebook and pencils from her bag. While she doubted they were going to be doing anything all that advanced it didn't change the fact that she needed to take this seriously. Not only that but while she was okay at speaking at this point, at least she could sound like a normal person anyway, this was still a foreign language to her, one that she had yet to master and so she needed to focus. So that meant taking excruciatingly detailed notes to review later.

"Alright everyone, let's begin." Iruka sensei calls out.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Quinn was quietly sitting next to Ino eating the bento meal that her mother had made for her and reading their first year Shinobi textbook that had been handed out to them in class. Meanwhile Ino was happily chatting away with a couple of the other girls, eager to make new friends. It made her happy, this was what she wanted for her sister, something normal like this. Just going to school and making friends.

Actually Quinn was a little surprised at how normal this all seemed. It was a ninja academy but so far all they had done was simple math and writing exercises, not unlike what she would expect from a kindergarten or first grade class back in her old world. I guess even ninja's needed to know how to read and write and do arithmetic. So far the only really ninja based thing they had done was starting to learn hand seals. There were twelve basic ones, each one based off of an animal in what Quinn knew back in her old life to be the Chinese Zodiac, but here were known as the twelve guardian animals. Legend stated that each individual animal had taught their specific seal to a mysterious figure known as The Sage of Six Paths which allowed him to manipulate the world around him. The very first ninja.

Of course nobody actually believed he really ever existed, at least not the way that the stories described him. He may have been based on a real person from long ago, but it was just as likely that he was made up or even a combination of many different people. Quinn likened his existence to something like Hercules or some other ancient Greek myth. Maybe a kernel of truth was buried in his stories somewhere, but ultimately he was just a fairy tale.

Each hand sign when executed properly manipulated your chakra a certain way. Each specific hand seal added something to the jutsu and helped to give it life. You couldn't just throw hand seals together and expect a technique out of it, careful planning and testing were required. Hand seals told a story with your chakra and the end of the story was your technique coming to life.

Or at least that's what her book said they did. So far they had only gone over what they looked like, with Iruka-sensei having them practice them for a couple of minutes before lunch. But by the end of the week they were expected to have them memorized and their first test would be on their ability to perform them flawlessly.

Made sense to Quinn, you needed these seals to perform jutsu and if you messed up you died. Memorizing them and perfecting them seemed like a pretty good place to start.

"Rin, we're going to go play on the playground, come on." Ino says standing up with the rest of the girls.

"Actually, I kind of want to keep reading, but you can go." Quinn says smiling. Let Ino play and be a kid, that was the whole point in her being here.

"Oh come on, that's so boring! You have to come play with us." Ino says, hands on her hips, not quite believing that her sister could actually want to read instead of play.

"You go, I'm okay, and besides I think it's kind of interesting." Quinn says.

"But-" Ino pouts, it usually got her what she wanted with Rin and her father. Her mother was strangely immune.

"Go!" Rin laughs, "Your friends are waiting."

Ino's new friends were already halfway there but had stopped to wait for her and were in fact calling her over to them.

Ino huffs, "Fine, but you have to play with us next time, okay." Ino says before taking off. "See you in class!"

Even once she was out of sight Quinn never lost track of her sister. Her ability to sense her location through her sensor abilities made sure of that. Actually she was able to keep tabs on pretty much everyone here, knowing their location and approximate moods. Ino's stood out because she was so familiar with her but she could also make out her sensei fairly easy too. He was currently on the roof with about seven others of approximately the same strength.

She lets out a sigh before turning back to her book. She could tell that Ino was a little disappointed that she hadn't joined her but that feeling was soon forgotten and swept away by the excitement and happiness of playing with her new friends. Actually, Quinn figured she was the only person here who wasn't excited to some degree or another. And why shouldn't they be, after all in this world being and training to be a ninja was exciting.

She's able to finish most of chapter one of her book before the bell rings signaling that it's time for them to return to class.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Ino and Rin are both happy to be let out for the day. Ino had pretty much established herself as the most popular girl in class by the end of the day and was riding high on the fact that just about all of the other girls were clamoring to be her friend. Quinn's excitement at getting out for the day was for a different reason. Other than hand seals the day had pretty much been normal, which meant that the school work involved really was designed for five and six year olds. It was so easy that Quinn was ready to pull her own hair out by the end of it. She would have to read ahead just so she wouldn't go crazy.

Their homework for the night was math and writing. The math was done in about five minutes during class, and the writing was Kanji memorization which was nice in that it would help her master the language but not very difficult either. Then of course they had to work on their hand seals and finally Iruka-sensei had sent them all home with a basic exercise regimen that they were expected to start and follow, it focused on building flexibility and endurance. Clan children were exempt if they already had a particular style that needed something different than what was assigned. So kids like Chouji and a rather brash and obnoxious boy named Kiba were exempt. However, despite being in a clan, theirs didn't have a specific clan Taijutsu style so they had to do it.

Not that Quinn minded. It wasn't even close to what Sylvester used to have her do, and it would be a good start to getting her back up to that level of athleticism. Ino however hated it, playing and running around with friends was fun, exercise was boring.

When they step out of the front gate of the academy and out into Konoha they are both surprised and pleased to see both of their parents there. Ino dashes straight over to their father while Quinn goes over to their mother.

"Hey princess." Inoichi says as he lifts a giggling Ino and twirls her around.

"Daddy! Not here, my friends are watching!" She says a little more firmly when he sets her down.

"Oh, I see how it is." He teases while Ino just rolls her little eyes.

"So did you have good first day then?" Megumi asks looking over at Ino as she hugs Rin.

"It was awesome, Iruka-sensei is kind of boring but I guess he's nice and I made a ton of friends!" She says excitedly as they begin their walk home, going into great detail about everything that she did today.

Quinn however doesn't mind, happy to let Ino fill the air with her chatter.

"And how about you sweetheart, did you have a good first day too?" Megumi asks smiling down at her youngest once there was a bit of a lull from Ino. She was worried for both of her daughters, this was a big day for the both of them, but she had fretted particularly over Rin who up until a week ago hadn't wanted to be there.

"Yeah, it was good." She says with a shrug.

Ino huffs, "She spent all day reading, she wouldn't even come play."

"How come, were you feeling a little shy?" Megumi asks.

Quinn shakes her head no. "No, it's just that we got our textbooks today and it was kind of interesting. I just wanted to read, that's all." She says with a shrug and a smile.

"Studying is important but don't forget to have fun and make friends too." Inoichi says with a fatherly smile.

Quinn nods her head but doesn't say anything back.

"So do you two have homework?"

Ino lets out a long suffering sigh. "Yes. It's so boring we have to do math, writing, and hand seals…" she trails off.

"Don't forget that they want us to start exercising as well." Rin speaks up quietly. Ino gives her a dirty look, having hoped to avoid that.

Both parents chuckle. "Well how about when we get home both of us will help you with it and if you get done early enough we can go out to eat to celebrate your first day? How does that sound?" Inoichi asks.

"Can we go to Nomura's!?" Ino asks excitedly, it being her favorite restaurant.

"I'm okay with that, how about you Rin? This is your day too." Inoichi says.

"I'm good, Nomura's sounds fine." She answers back.

"Yay! Quick lets hurry home and get this over with, the sooner we're done with our homework the sooner we can eat!" Ino says as she begins to run dragging a laughing Inoichi behind her, a determined look on her face.

Megumi looks down at Rin, a bit of a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Do you want to race them home?"

"Well… they're already quite a ways ahead but… sure."

"Don't you worry about that." Megumi says with a wink as she picks up Rin. "Alright sweetheart, hold on tight." She says as she activates the body flicker technique.

In a whirl of wind and chakra Quinn hangs on tight and suddenly before her eyes can even register it she and her mother are about twenty yards in front of Ino and Inoichi. "Race you there." Megumi calls out, she then sticks her tongue out playfully and Quinn can't help but giggle and do the same.

She can hear Ino shout, "Let's get them!" and in a flash Inoichi has picked up Ino and the two of them give chase. It was fun. There was no other word for it. The stuff that she watched her parents do as they raced through Konoha was incredible. It showed her not only just how far she had to go but it also showed her another side of this ninja world. It would still be scary and there would be death in her future, but there were also people. Families and moments like this. She would never be able to accept the whole child soldier aspect of this world but she finally realized that there was more to it than that. That this world wasn't just filled with amoral monsters. In some ways that made what she had to do harder but in other ways it gave her hope.

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 **xXx-Author's Note-xXx**

 **s**

 **So I'm not sure where hand seals really come from in the Naruto-verse but I thought the 12 guardian animals idea was a fun little world building thing. It's not really vital or anything but I thought it was kind of cool idea. If any of you do actually know the origin of hand seals I would love to hear about it though :)**


	7. Chapter 6

**Standard Disclaimer. I don't own Naruto or Glee. So, there are a couple of time skips in this chapter, as well as the introduction of Naruto and Sakura to the story, who along with Quinn and Ino, are the other two main characters of this story. Please forgive any grammar or spelling errors, like I've said I try to catch them but I'm not always successful. Anyway, I hope you enjoy.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 6-xXx**

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Quinn ran at the tree again, gathering Chakra into the bottom of her feet to try and stick to it, and once again she was sent catapulting away, forcing herself to twist and flip in the air so that she could land without hurting herself. She had seen many ninja's stick to walls before and had been curious about how they did it. When she had asked Iruka-sensei he had said that it was an advanced chakra control technique that she would learn when she became a genin, but that it was currently too advanced for her and that she should probably stick to the leaf sticking exercise.

She hadn't appreciated that. She wasn't being arrogant or trying to brag when she told him that it was too easy for her, that she could already do the leaf sticking exercise, but it had probably come out that way and so he had told her that if she knew how to do it then she should perfect it. How you perfected it though was something she had no idea on how to go about doing. She could make a leaf stick to any part of her body that she wanted, she could make multiple leaves stick. It wasn't hard, did she have to show up to class looking like the freaking swamp thing for Iruka-sensei to realize that she had it down?

Luckily Mizuki-sensei was a little more lax about that kind of thing. He seemed friendly enough to the average person and was always willing to lend a hand to any student who asked, though Quinn could sense a lot of anger and resentment within him whenever she sensed his chakra, she could also tell that he was fairly powerful, stronger than Iruka-sensei by quite a bit so maybe he just resented being stuck at the academy. So she had asked Mizuki-sensei if he would be willing to teach her how to do it and he had agreed.

The key was to find the right amount of chakra that would allow you to stick to the tree, similar to the leaf sticking exercise, but not so much that it blew you away and that was where she was having trouble. If she just stood next to the tree she could get the right amount of chakra to get her foot to stick to it, but it wasn't enough to hold her weight when she tried to walk up the tree. Mizuki-sensei had suggested that she begin with a running start and use a kunai to mark her place. When she ran she found she could make it up a little ways but as she got higher up the tree she would lose her momentum and the amount of chakra she was using would no longer be enough. So she tried to compensate and add more chakra, this usually sent her flying away.

Once on the ground she would start over. She had been working on this for two days now and she was getting closer and closer to that perfect output. She looks at the poor tree that she had chosen to practice off of. It was a rather large and sturdy old thing, hidden in the back corner of her clan's property, so she didn't feel quite as bad about its condition as she would if it were in a training field or something. The entire lower trunk of the tree near the ground was missing most of its bark, and then the higher you looked it was covered in slash marks from her kunai marking her progress.

She lets out a sigh, she would give it a couple more runs and then call it a day. There were other things she needed to work on as well, plus she needed to get home. She couldn't spend all day practicing this, she just didn't have the time. On her last attempt she had used just a little too much chakra so once again she would lower the output by just a tiny bit. She takes a calming breath and slowly starts to mold the chakra at the bottom of her feet, when she feels it reach the amount that she wants, she charges forward at full speed.

She sticks, perfect! She was doing it, she was almost to the top of the tree! However her surprise at successfully accomplishing her task after two days of hard work breaks her concentration and her foot slips. She was now falling head first towards the ground, and with the way she was falling there was no way she would be able to right herself. She puts her arms forward to try and cushion her fall a bit, better to break her arms than her neck after all, and waits for the pain. However before she hits the ground she feels a pair of arms wrap around her and the next thing she knows she's being held safely in her father's arms.

"Hi daddy." She says with a smile, hoping to defuse the situation. She could tell by the look on his face that he wasn't happy.

"What do you think you're doing, you could have seriously hurt yourself!?" He asks as he sets her down and begins to check her for injuries.

"I'm learning how tree climb with my chakra."

Her father pinches his brow. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that is to attempt on your own? If your mother hadn't sent me to come grab you for dinner, you would have been seriously hurt."

Quinn sighs, "I'm sorry… it's just… the stuff we're doing at the academy right now is too easy. Everybody is working on the leaf sticking exercise but I already know how to do that. It's easy. It's not a challenge, and I'm not getting anything out of it, at least not anymore its… well… it's a waste of my time."

Her father sighs before giving her an appraising look. "Alright," he says as he rubs his chin. "I can see where you're coming from. You need more of a challenge and that's fine, but, you can't be reckless okay. Be smart about your training. You have plenty of time to advance, so to do something that could get you hurt just because you think you're not progressing fast enough is foolish at best and recklessly dangerous at worst." He scolds her.

"Yes daddy. I'm sorry." She says softly. She hadn't meant to worry him or anybody, but she couldn't slow down either. Plus, as much as she hated to admit it, she was enjoying it, her training. Since learning about chakra she had wanted to learn as much as she could about it and what it could do and now she was.

"However, that doesn't mean your old man isn't proud of you." He says with a smile, and Quinn can feel her heart swell. She loved to hear that, that her father was proud of her. "And since we're here, why don't you show me what you've got so far."

"I thought you said it was dangerous?" She asks curiously.

"I said it was dangerous to attempt it on your own, but you're not on your own now, are you? I'm here." He says with a wink.

Quinn grins at him. "Alright, watch this!" She says before taking off towards the tree, recalling the exact amount of chakra she had used last time, and just like last time it works. And unlike last time she stays focused and makes it all the way to the top.

"That's my girl!" he whoops, "Fantastic job sweetheart!"

She giggles at his enthusiasm, enjoying every bit of it. "Thanks." She says as she slowly makes her way down the tree. Hugging it and sliding down.

"I guess I still have a ways to go." She says sheepishly, when she finally makes it back down to him.

"Rin, sweetheart, do you have any idea of how far you've come?" He asks her seriously. "Honey you've been at the academy, not even a year yet and you've already learned how to tree climb, and you did it on your own too. I didn't even think to learn that until after I had already been a genin for a couple of months. You're coming along so fast and I am so very proud of you." He says and Quinn can't help it she flings herself into her father's arms for a hug.

This is what a father should be. This is the kind of man that every child should be lucky enough to have in their life. She hated herself for betraying the trust of this man. She had to tell him, she had to tell him the truth about herself and where she came from. That she wasn't really his daughter. After everything that he has done for her, she owed him that.

"Daddy…" Quinn wonders if she would be allowed to call him that after this was over. "Can… I need to tell you something." She says, her voice quivering.

"Of course, you can tell me anything."

And as she looks at the man that for the past six years had been her father, the kindness, the warmth and the devotion on his face… she just couldn't lose that. She truly was a coward at heart, but she didn't want to lose this family. She would keep lying to them, keep pretending that she was worthy of this family she had been placed in.

"I… love you."

"I love you too. Now come on we'd better get home, before your mother starts to worry."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn looks up from her scroll and for a moment stares longingly across the courtyard as Ino and Sakura laugh together. She felt a painful ache in her heart and the desire to go over there and join them was almost overwhelming. She missed the closeness that she and Ino had once shared. But a year and half at the academy had proven just how different the two of them were. Ino was a bright, happy, talented seven year old girl and Quinn loved her to death. But no matter how hard Quinn tried she just couldn't look at her as anything other than a child. She was seven and Quinn… wasn't. She could pretend for a bit, but ultimately that was all it was.

She loved Ino, don't get her wrong, her sister was everything to her but Quinn was not a child, not where it counted. In a way she was glad that Ino had found Sakura, she genuinely liked the other girl and thought she was a good friend for Ino to have. Ino was loud and boisterous, while Sakura was quiet and reserved, she thought they were good for each other. Ino brought Sakura out of her shell and Sakura helped to temper Ino. What made it hard for Quinn was how alone she felt as her sister found a new best friend.

Quinn felt she was physically too young to forge bonds with people who were her age mentally and too old to do the same with people with who were her age physically. She had a close relationship with her parents, but that was as parents to their child, not as friends and equals. And while she loved it and savored every second of it, she wanted something more. She knew it was greedy, she knew how lucky she was to have this second chance, but she felt isolated. But it wasn't like she could really do anything about it, her entire existence was based around a lie and maintaining that lie. She glances over at Ino and Sakura once more, and almost gets up to go over and join them.

Almost.

No, it was good that Ino was making friends with someone besides her. She deserved to. She deserved to have someone who was there for her who wasn't a freak. And there was no doubt about it, she was a freak. She generally ignored it because what else was there to do about it. But she would often hear the adults and her teachers talking, and even her parents every once in a while, and they would all talk about how advanced she was and how fast she was coming along. The word prodigy was often heard in those conversations. She was different and there was really no way to hide it.

On the one hand it was nice, now when she asked for training in something people generally gave her the benefit of the doubt and would assist her, even if it was considered a little too advanced for her. On the other hand it brought her a lot scrutiny. Everyone was watching to see if she was the next legendary ninja to come to fruition. Not that it really changed anything, she was here to get strong enough so that she could protect her sister and make sure she could have a relatively safe and normal life. Whatever people thought of her as she worked towards that goal was irrelevant.

And they were watching her, she was progressing much faster than any of her peers. The problem was everything really was coming that easy to her, and holding back was never an option for her. She had been working on her chakra reserves and control since she was a baby, so anything the academy had to offer in that department had so far had been beneath her. She had the second largest reserves in class, only trailing behind a boy named Naruto who had an insane amount, and she had already moved on from tree climbing and water walking to other more advanced techniques and exercises. Currently she was working on a technique called Chakra Strings.

It was a little more obscure technique here in Konoha, than say in Suna, but it was nifty little trick and quite useful if you were able to master it. The concept itself was easy to comprehend but difficult to master. The user would send their chakra out and attach it to a target, kind of like a long distance leaf sticking exercise, while at the same time concentrating it into a very tight thin stream. Eventually the chakra would condense to the point where it became visible and looked like a string of chakra, though people who mastered the technique were able to condense their chakra to point that it was invisible. Once the chakra string was made and connected to another object you could then manipulate it from a distance.

Suna ninja were renowned for their mastery of this art and their ability to use it to move and manipulate deadly puppets that were specifically designed for combat. And while she had no desire to become a puppeteer, the ability to move and manipulate objects from a distance was an incredibly useful thing to be able to do. Plus it would have the added benefit of pushing her control through the roof.

She was starting off small and easy, just practicing gathering her chakra into the tip of her finger, concentrating it, and then sending it out. Getting herself used to the feel of it, and the way it pulled and strained her reserves. Not that it was a chakra intensive technique, not by a long shot, but knowing all of this helped her to know how to control it.

Her concentration is broken by a voice behind her.

"Hey, what'cha doing?"

When Quinn looks up she can see Naruto standing there grinning at her. They had shared the same class for a year and a half now but this was the first time she can recall either of them saying something to one another. They'd had no cause to. She was at the top of the class, quiet and always studying or training and he was well… the class clown. Loud, energetic, skipped class half the time and was always pulling some stupid prank or another. It wasn't like she disliked him or anything, it was just that he was very much a little kid and she wasn't.

"I'm practicing." She says politely back, with a little smile.

"Really?" He asks confused. "Because it kind of looks like you're just staring at your hand."

Quinn laughs, but stops when she sees the slight flash of hurt that crosses his face.

"Sorry," she says, "I guess it probably does look like that. I'm working on a technique called Chakra Strings. I'm just working out the mechanics of it all before I really get started."

"That sounds boring, what are you going to do with Chakra Strings?"

Quinn shrugs and smiles, "I'm sure I'll think of something."

"So hey, instead do you wanna come play ninja with me?" He asks with no real preamble.

"No thank you, I really want to work on this. I'm sure someone else will though."

Naruto laughs and scratches the back of his head embarrassed. "Sure, sure, no big deal, I just thought you looked kind of lonely over here by yourself that's all. Well I'll see you later."

Quinn felt kind of bad as he began to walk away, it was very sweet of him to offer after all. It was as she got back to concentrating on her technique that her sensor abilities picked up on it. Isolation, hopelessness, depression. It actually brought her up short and she grasps at her heart as she looks over at Naruto who is cheerfully walking away and she can't believe the emotions she is picking up from him through his chakra. If she was feeling these emotions from him, especially when she was suppressing her ability, then they were hitting him hard.

She was lonely, but at least she had people who cared about her. But this… these feelings coming from him, no child should ever have to feel that way. "Naruto-" Her voice cracks, but she recovers quickly when he turns to face her and she can see just how forced and fake that smile of his is. It was the same smile she used to wear, when smiling was the only way to keep from crying.

"Yeah?"

She gives him a genuine smile of her own. "You're welcome to join me if you wish."

His eyes light up at that. "Sure!" He shouts as he runs back over and plops down on the grass next to her. "Are you going to teach me your Chakra String jutsu!?" He asks excitedly.

"Maybe, how good is your control? Have you completed the leaf sticking exercise yet?"

Naruto face falls, but he recovers quickly. "No, not yet but I will, believe it!" He shouts.

In the back of her mind Quinn was pretty sure that at this moment her days of peace and quiet were over but surprisingly she found that she didn't mind all that much. "Alright, you work on that for now and once you've gotten a good grasp on it we'll move on."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Ino watched as Naruto sat down beside her sister and she wasn't quite sure how she felt about that. On the one hand she was thrilled that Rin was finally making a friend, on the other hand… why did it have to be Naruto of all people? It was pretty much social suicide to hang out with him. Not that Rin had much of a social life to begin with. Oh gods, what if Rin had a crush on him. Her mind was suddenly filled with visions of Naruto in family photos sticking out his tongue while hordes of miniature Naruto's trampled through the village. She loved her sister, but she had weird tastes and interests and it would be just like her to crush on someone like him.

She was always reading or training, and she never wanted to play anymore. To be fair Rin had asked her on more than one occasion if she would like to join her, and Ino had made similar offers but neither one of them had ever accepted. She missed her sister, but they were just so different. Gone were the days when she could just take Rin by the hand and lead her around, they were becoming their own people, and they just had different interests.

She figured that was what had drawn her to Sakura in the first place. She was so much like how her sister used to be that Ino couldn't help but want to look out for her. She was glad that she did too, because it was nice to have a best friend again. She missed Rin and it hurt her feelings a little bit that Rin seemed more comfortable sitting with Naruto than hanging out with her, but she was also glad that Rin was finally letting someone in. Ino's attention is immediately taken off of her sister when Sakura squeals in delight and points out that the strongest boy in class, Sasuke, had arrived.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

As Quinn is packing up her things to go home for the day she could sense Naruto's chakra signature approaching so she quickly finishes up what she is doing and waits. It was amazing really, she usually suppressed her sensor abilities, but this was the second time today that it hadn't mattered with him. Earlier it had been because of the powerful emotions he was feeling, but now that the classroom was empty and it was just the two of them it was glaringly obvious, he just had that much chakra. If there was nothing or no one to distract her from it of course she was going to pick it up. It was just a little surprising that someone not even out of the academy would have that much. Even her Uncle Chouza's reserves paled in comparison to Naruto and he had more chakra than anyone she knew.

"Hey Rin!" Naruto shouts as he approaches her because apparently the art of speaking softly was lost on him.

"Hello Naruto." She says politely as she slings her bag over her shoulder.

"Hey Rin, um… I was wondering… um… do you think you could keep helping me with that whole chakra string jutsu thing? I mean I'm already pretty close to figuring it out, but I figured a little extra help couldn't hurt, you know?" He tries to appear confident as he says all of this but she didn't need her abilities to sense the nervousness that is radiating off of him.

Quinn arches a brow at him, and gives a tiny little smirk. "You're pretty close huh?"

"Oh sure, just give me a couple of hours and there isn't any jutsu I can't master, believe it!" He shouts excitedly.

Quinn winces at the volume. "Well you'll probably be bored with me then, because I've nowhere near mastered it yet."

Naruto's face falls, but he recovers quickly. "Well, maybe I exaggerated a little bit but… um-"

"Naruto." She interrupts, "If you want to learn how to do it, I have no problem teaching you."

His face lights up, "Really!? Awesome! Let's get started, I'm going to have this down in no time flat, believe it!" He shouts.

Quinn sighs, "Naruto."

"Yeah?"

"You don't need to shout, I'm right here, I can hear you." She didn't want to come right out and tell the poor kid to shut up but then again she didn't want her eardrums blown out either.

"Oh!" Naruto stops short and then chuckles nervously as he scratches the back of his head. "Sorry Rin." He whispers.

Quinn laughs. "You don't have to whisper either, just don't yell, okay?"

"Yeah sure, no problem."

"Now, I just need to find my sister and then we'll be off."

"Oh yeah, that's right, Ino is your sister right?"

"Yep… ah there she is." Quinn says as she focuses in on her sister's location. "Come on."

Quinn leads her and Naruto through the school and out into the courtyard where Ino, Sakura, and couple of other girls are all waiting around. Quinn makes her way over next to her sister, while Naruto stays behind. "Hey Ino."

"Hey sis," Ino says smiling as she wraps an arm around Quinn's shoulder. "I'm glad you're here. There's a new shop that's opening up and we were all going to go check it out, do you want to come?"

"Um… actually I was about to ask if you wanted to come and hang out with me and Naruto, we're working on a new technique."

"Oh come on, please!" Ino pleads, "All you ever do is study, you need to live a little. Trust your big sister, she knows what she's talking about." Ino says knowingly.

"Just leave it Ino, Rin's a stick in the mud anyway." One of the other girls scoffs, Ami she thinks is her name.

"Watch it!" Ino snaps, coming to her sister's defense. "Rin may be a little too into reading and stuff, but she's still my sister and really cool too. Plus she's a better ninja than you so I wouldn't make her too mad."

"Whatever…" The girl mumbles quietly to herself, but she definitely drops it not wanting to risk it. It was well known that Rin was at the very top of the class, currently tied for that first place spot with Sasuke.

"So how about it, will you come?" Ino asks.

"It would be nice if you could join us Rin." Sakura adds.

Quinn hesitates. "Well… can Naruto come too, I already said I would hang out with him and I'm not going to just ditch him."

"No, absolutely not!" The same girl as before says, "I draw the line at that loser."

"I don't think its good idea either, both of my parents say that he's no good." Another girl pipes up.

"I heard that his parents are really famous traitors and that they just left him here so that they wouldn't be slowed down as they tried to escape from the hunter-nin." A third girl adds.

"I'd buy that, he's such a jerk I can totally see him coming from traitors. I can't stand him." A fourth girl says.

"No kidding. I don't want to hang around him, Ami's right, he's a loser."

"Well I heard-"

"That's enough!" Quinn shouts, her anger getting the better of her as memories of her own past actions come to mind, remembering the way she had treated people. All of the girls' mouths snap shut, having never heard Rin yell before. "Naruto's really nice, a little loud but he's certainly not bad or anything, and it's disgusting the way that you all stand here and talk about him like that! Like he's not a real person with feelings! You should all be ashamed of yourselves!"

Quinn scoffs, as she looks at them in disgust. "I'm out of here."

"So," Ami snaps, "We didn't want you to come anyway."

Quinn stares at the girl and arches her brow, giving her the driest most unimpressed look she can. "Oh no." She says flatly, "How will I ever survive the heartbreak."

Quinn then turns to look at her sister who is standing their looking very uncertain. "Nice friends." She says softly before she begins to walk back to Naruto.

"Wait!" Ino calls out. "Rin, of course we want you to come and," here she turns and glares at the rest of the girls. "If Naruto wants to come too then he's invited as well."

"Ino!" Ami gasps, scandalized.

"Don't, my sister is always welcome to join us, always." Ino says with a glare. "This was my idea in the first place and I can invite whoever I want. And if Rin wants to invite Naruto then she can. You can either suck it up and come with us and have fun or go home."

Quinn is grinning at her sister. There was the Ino that she knew and loved.

"Ino's totally right." Sakura speaks up. "Look if Rin says he's okay then we should give her the benefit of the doubt and give him a chance."

"Whatever, I'm out of here." Ami scoffs, and two of the other girls hesitantly follow her.

"Good riddance." Ino says, she and Ami had always butted heads anyway. She looks around, Sakura and her two other friends were still here, so if Rin and… Naruto joined them, that was going to take some getting used to, then they would be back to a full group.

Quinn goes over and hugs her sister. "I'm sorry, I know that must have been hard, I know they were your friends but that was really brave of you."

Ino smiles. "You're my sister. It wasn't that hard. Besides, if you love Naruto then I guess I'll have to just get used to him."

Quinn chokes on her own spit. "What!? No, we're just friends."

Ino coos at her, "It's okay baby sister, you don't need to be shy. Sure you could have picked someone a little cooler to have given your heart to and he can be kind of loud and… well… but if you like him then he must have really good qualities too."

"Ino." Quinn huffs.

"Ah, ah, ah, don't keep your boyfriend waiting." Ino scolds her playfully.

Quinn rolls her eyes because she knew that she was going to have to put up with this for a while. Once Ino got an idea in her head then there was pretty much nothing you could do to change it. So with a sigh she turns and heads back over to Naruto who is watching her nervously but quickly forces a smile onto his face.

"Hey Rin, it's cool if you want to go hang out with them, we can maybe catch up tomorrow if you want to, so no worries."

"You can come with us." Quinn says.

"Nah, that's okay, I don't want to impose or anything besides… I could kind of hear some of what they were saying and…"

"That was just Ami, she's a b…" It was a little harsh to call a seven year old a bitch. "Brat… she's a brat. Besides who cares if she doesn't want you there. I do. You're my friend, so come on, I even have a little money so we can get a treat or something."

Naruto looks close to tears. "Um… are we… are we really friends?"

Quinn just smiles and grabs him by the hand and leads him over to the group. The happiness and joy that was radiating from him was almost palpable and it made Quinn feel happy too. Nobody should ever have to feel alone.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Hey Rin, hold this dress in front of you." Ino says as she hands her a light blue dress.

"What? Why?" Quinn asks, still doing as Ino asks.

"Because I want to see how I'd look in it, duh." Ino says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

Quinn rolls her eyes but doesn't argue. They were after all completely identical. Ino currently had her hair cut shorter while Quinn had favored letting her hair grow long where it now hung loosely at her lower back. But otherwise it was impossible to tell them apart physically.

"That's a pretty dress." Sakura comments. "Are you thinking of getting it Rin?"

Quinn shakes her head. "No, this is for Ino, definitely." Way too much lace and frills for her taste.

"Well it looks good." Sakura says, her eyes lingering for a moment before she shrugs and turns her attention to a rack that had various hair braids on it.

"It does, doesn't it?" Ino says, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Ino." Quinn warns, to no avail.

"Oi, Naruto come here." Ino demands.

Naruto's head pops up from a manga that he was looking at and heads over. The new store was a large general store that had branches in major cities throughout the Land of Fire. It had just about everything, including some ninja gear. Nothing as high quality as you could get from a local smith but certainly not too shabby. "Uh, yeah what's up?" Naruto asks when he gets there.

Ino places an arm around Naruto's shoulder. "Naruto, don't you think Rin looks really pretty in that dress?" Ino asks in a leading voice.

Naruto turns bright red. "Uh… um… yeah s-sure." He stutters out.

"You don't sound too sure. Don't you think my sister is pretty?" Ino asks with a glare.

"Of course I do! Rin is really cute!" He shouts out, alarmed.

"So you do like her then?" Ino teases.

"Of course I do, Ah! I mean no I don't… no wait that's not what I meant, I-" Naruto is completely flustered and so Quinn decides to take pity on him.

"Thank you Naruto, I know what you meant. And as for you," Quinn scolds Ino lightly, "Stop teasing him."

"I was just asking him a simple question." Ino says with an air of innocence that Quinn didn't buy for a second.

"Yeah right." She says dryly, before pushing the dress back into Ino's arms. "Here's your dress back."

"Hmmm, I don't know if I want it." Ino says thoughtfully.

"Right, Naruto do you want to come check out the rest of the store?" She asks. She needed to get poor Naruto away from Ino and her scheming. Her sister wasn't being cruel, but Naruto was so far out of his league that it wasn't even fair.

"Yeah sure." Naruto answers quickly, his face still tinged pink.

As they are walking away they hear Ino call out. "You two behave now and Naruto it's customary to hold your date's hand!"

Quinn looks up to the sky and sighs, heaven give her strength. She looks over at Naruto who seems frozen in place. "Don't mind her, she just likes to stir up trouble. Come on, I want to check the stuff that's over there."

"Oh… right…" Naruto stutters out nervously. His eyes darting from her and away again as his cheeks flush a light pink.

"Naruto she's just teasing. Don't take her too seriously. We're friends, it's okay for us to hang out together."

"Right." Naruto says with a smile, looking more than a little relieved.

Once the two of them are out of sight Sakura, Mia, and Natsumi all go up Ino. "Are they really dating?" Sakura asks, wide eyed.

Ino laughs. "Probably not, I think they're just friends. But I like to tease my sister and that was too good an opportunity to pass up, plus Naruto was just too easy."

"Awe, that's too bad. I think they look cute together." Natsumi says, sounding a little disappointed.

"You just want something to gossip about." Mia teases, nudging her friend.

Natsumi giggles. "Maybe just a little bit, but honestly, Naruto's not as bad as I thought he would be."

"Yeah, I guess he's alright." Sakura agrees, a thoughtful expression on her face. "He was certainly a lot quieter than I'm used to."

"That's because he was nervous." Ino says softly. "A little teasing is okay as long as it's all in good fun and nobody gets hurt. But let's not take it too far okay. Rin has a hard time making friends and I'm really happy for her and I don't want to ruin it for her."

Sakura smiles at Ino. "You're a good sister."

"Yeah, I wish I had a big sister like you." Natsumi says.

"What are you talking about, you already have an older sister?" Mia says confused.

"Oh yeah! I forgot."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

It was late in the evening when they finally had to call it quits and head home. While Ino was saying goodbye to her friends Quinn was saying goodbye to Naruto.

"So thanks for inviting me... I actually had a lot of fun." Naruto says shyly.

"I did too. I'm glad you came, but we lost out on a whole day of training because of it so we're going to have to work extra hard to make up for it tomorrow." Quinn says with a smile.

"Definitely!" Naruto shouts excitedly. "We're going to have that chakra strings jutsu down in no time, believe it!"

Quinn nods her head in the affirmative. "You got it, I'm counting on you to help me do it too."

Naruto has a confident smile on his face. "Definitely."

"Oh hey, before you go. Here, I bought this for you. I saw you looking at it so I grabbed it before we left. I hope you like it." Rin says pulling out a little green blob and handing it to Naruto.

Naruto takes it from her and looks confused for a moment before he realizes what it is. He had been looking at wallets and had seen this green frog wallet sitting there. He thought it was an odd little thing but he had wondered if Rin might like it. He had wanted to get it for her as a thank you for inviting him, but unfortunately he didn't have enough spending money to buy it. He feels choked up that she had even noticed him looking at it and got it for him thinking he liked it. Nobody paid that much attention to him, ever. And with that, what had initially been an odd little thing that he was considering as gift for a friend had just become his most prized possession.

"I love it, it's fantastic!" Naruto says, forcing himself not to cry. Boys weren't supposed to cry, that's what he had heard Kiba say anyway, they were tough. But boy was it hard not to right now. "I'll call him Gama-Chan!"

"I think that's a great name." Quinn says smiling, glad she had made the right choice and gotten him something he had liked. "So I'll see you tomorrow then. Goodnight Naruto."

"Goodnight Rin!" Naruto calls out as he starts to run back home, a real smile on his face. Today had officially been the best day of his life.

"He seemed happy… did you give him a kiss goodnight?" Ino asks impishly.

"Ino-"

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding. I'll stop okay. Actually, I'm really glad you've made a friend. I worry about you."

"What? Really?" Quinn asks, confused.

"Yeah, you're always working so hard. I'm glad you're starting to make friends and… I'm glad we got to spend some time together today. We don't get to do that all that much anymore."

"No… I guess we don't." Quinn says softly.

"You know, today doesn't have to be a one-time thing. You can come hang out with me any time you want." Ino offers.

"We already did what you wanted to today, next time you come and train with me instead." Quinn counters with a smile.

"Deal. I know we're growing up but let's still make time for each other okay. I've missed you and I don't like that we've been growing apart so let's try harder okay?" Ino says seriously.

"You're right, I miss you too and I need to do better."

"That's not what I said you goof," Ino says affectionately poking her forehead. "I said we need to do better. So, what time is training tomorrow?"

Quinn smiles, she hadn't really realized just how much she truly missed spending time with Ino until today, training was no excuse to neglect her sister and she needed to stop making excuses and start making an effort. She didn't want to drift apart from Ino the same way that she and Francine had. "As soon as class lets out."


	8. Chapter 7

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto. So… you're probably used to them by now but there's another time skip from last chapter to this chapter. Also there's a bit of exposition as I talk about how I imagine 'jutsu' working in this world as well as how techniques are mastered and perfected which are actually two different things in this story. Don't know how close it actually is to canon, but, I don't think it's too far out there. Also, once again, please forgive any spelling and grammar errors, I try to catch them but I know I'm not always successful. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy and thank you for reading.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 7-xXx**

 **s**

Megumi stared in admiration and amazement at her daughters and their friends. They had all really stepped up their efforts to train and become strong and it had really brought her two daughters closer together. When they had started up at the academy Ino and Rin had sort of drifted apart, but then one night they came home and it was as if nothing had changed and they were as close as ever. At ten years old now, they were the best of friends and it was everything that Megumi had hoped for when Rin was brought into their lives.

Ino had picked up more of Rin's work ethic and over the past two and half years had improved by leaps and bounds. Like her sister she could already tree climb, water walk, and apparently they had all learned chakra strings as well. They worked out together, practiced together, sparred against each other often and were continually pushing each other to improve.

And Rin was learning how to enjoy life from Ino. She didn't have a lot of friends but she was close to her sister again and had grown closer to Sakura by extension and had even made a best friend of her own. Naruto was an interesting character to say the least. Though she worried what that friendship might mean, jinchūriki were dangerous, if they ever lost control of the beasts inside of them it never distinguished between friend and foe. However, Naruto himself was a very sweet, if not boisterous, little boy and despite her concerns about the monster he contained inside of him thought that he was a good friend for her daughter.

It was nice to watch her daughters push and elevate and encourage one another. The two of them were developing into fine kunoichi with their own unique styles. Ino was all about the more subtle shinobi arts. Like her father she loved Intelligence and Counter Intelligence. She loved to figure out puzzles and to find hidden information and to figure out how people worked. And the reports that they received from the Academy said that she was quite talented in this area too. But where Ino really shined was in her understanding of poisons and toxins. She had taken to that particular area like a bee to honey, able to not only tell you what toxin or poison came from what plant or animal, but how to safely extract it, store it, and counter it. If it had to do with Dokujutsu, poison techniques, then her oldest child was turning out to be quite the prodigy.

As for Rin… Rin was a prodigy in every sense of the word, though her focus was combat. Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, Taijutsu, she wanted to learn it all. She didn't underestimate the more subtle arts, she saw the use and power that they held, but it wasn't where her interests were. Rin had already learned her elemental affinity, fire, and was going through great lengths to master her new found ability.

She had already learned the **Grand Fire Ball Jutsu** , **Phoenix Flower Jutsu** and the **Dragon Fire Jutsu** which normally required the use of ninja wires to give the fire a path to run along, but Rin had cleverly figured out how to use the **Chakra String technique** to use it instead which normally wasn't possible. It had been tried before but the power of the fire technique always overwhelmed and destroyed the string as soon as it was released. She had found a way around that. Her Rin never did anything halfway, if she was going to learn something she was going to master it.

It worried her though, Ino looked to be following in Inoichi's footsteps and with a little effort she could ultimately find a job in the village and be relatively safe for a ninja, Rin however was turning into a real front line fighter. The kind that either became a legend or died in obscurity, and neither one of those options had a very long life span. She could very well end up being the next Hatake Kakashi or Uzuki Yugao, but Megumi had also been a special jōnin and had seen more than enough to know that the alternative was much more likely.

Still it did no good worry and fret about the future. All she could do was watch her daughters and provide whatever support that she could give them. Actually she was having quite a bit of fun watching them right now. They were outside just insight of the house and had obviously learned the **Substitution Jutsu** today and were practicing it by trying to pelt each other with paint pellets, courtesy of Naruto if she had to guess, and then using **Substitution Jutsu** to get out of the way.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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 **Substitution Jutsu** was a freaking God send as far as Quinn was concerned. A ninja technique that cost almost zero chakra and teleported you out of harm's way… yeah if there was one technique that she was going to master to its fullest potential and force Ino, Naruto, and Sakura to do the same it was this one.

She could already do it without shouting out the name of the technique, so that was a good first step. Basically a fully performed technique worked like this. You visualized the jutsu in your head while simultaneously gathering the necessary chakra and performing the necessary hand seals. When you felt the technique reach its completion point you released your chakra, then to help you maintain your focus you called out the technique's name as you released it. The more difficult a technique the more necessary each of these steps were.

Mastering a technique was basically removing steps from the equation until you could just make your chakra do it. Usually you started by removing the need to call out the name of the jutsu, and then you moved on from there by slowly removing the various hand seals until you could do the jutsu silently with either only one seal or even none.

Perfecting a technique was a little different. When you perfected a jutsu you had long since mastered it and had instead taken it to that next level where you basically break it. A famous example of perfecting a jutsu was Shisui of the **Body Flicker**. Someone she had read about in one of her father's old Bingo Books. He was a member of the Uchiha clan who had taken the **Body Flicker Jutsu** and made it usable in combat. Normally the **Body Flicker** wasn't a technique you could just use in combat. It was a great way to travel over short distances quickly but it took a lot of concentration and despite making you move faster than the eye could follow, it was hard to control in a combat situation. Shisui had figured a way around that, thus perfecting the technique.

Quinn sees Sakura jump out at her out of the corner of her eyes, throwing one of her pink pellets. Quinn acts quickly putting her hands together for the correct hand seals, Tiger-Boar-Ox-Dog-Snake, she feels the what is becoming a familiar pull on her stomach as her chakra zooms out to find a similarly massed object and then almost as if she's being squeezed through a tube she finds herself hidden in the bushes as Sakura's pellet explodes off of a log.

As you got better at this technique the size of the object needed would get smaller and smaller and you could learn to control what object you switched places with. And if you were fast enough there was a split second that occurred where you and your target were right next to each other and you could place traps on it. Quinn was determined to learn how to abuse the absolute shit out of this technique, she wanted to be able to switch places with practically nothing, a leaf, a stray kunai, whatever. It might take a while but it would be totally worth it if it meant she was safe. Quinn always mastered any technique she learned, but this may very well be the one she perfected. But until she reached that point she was stuck going wherever the technique sent her and replacing herself with whatever was available.

She looks up from her new position and sees Naruto hiding on the branch above her, oblivious to her presence. She grabs one of her red pellets and quickly runs up the tree and instead of throwing the pellet she goes into to slam it against him, but she forgot about what a sneaky little bastard Naruto could be and when she hits that orange coat of his she realizes a second too late that it's empty and she can feel a pellet explode against her back, covering her with orange. If she had been using her ability it would never have happened, but apparently it was "cheating" so she agreed to keep her sensor abilities suppressed for their game. Cheating, she scoffs internally, they were freaking ninja, but it really wasn't a big deal.

"Yahoo! I'm awesome, I'm awesome! Naruto one, Rin zero! Who's the man, who is the- damn it…" Naruto pouts as one of Sakura's pink pellets explodes across his face turning his head pink.

"You shouldn't have gotten cocky Naruto, now you're out." Sakura giggles, sticking her tongue out at him.

"You should take your own advice!" Ino shouts as she jumps from out of nowhere and throws a pellet of her own, but when it hits Sakura she poofs away and a now purple log is in her place.

*Poof*

Ino's shoulders sag when she realizes she's been beaten. Her left side covered in pink.

"And you shouldn't have shouted out your position." Sakura teases as she steps out from behind a tree, completely clean. "You might have won that way. Looks like I'm the winner here, you may all commence with bowing before my greatness." She smirks.

Ino, Rin, and Naruto all exchange looks. "Get her!" Naruto calls out laughing.

Sakura shrieks as she's suddenly peppered with Red, Purple, and Orange pellets.

"Oh you guys suck." She huffs petulantly, before breaking out into laughter with the rest of them.

Quinn is happier right now than she can ever remember being. This is exactly what she wanted for Ino, and now for Naruto and Sakura too. Moments like this, where they could all just be kids.

"Well it looks like Sakura is our winner." Quinn says smiling at the young girl.

"Yeah, good job Sakura, you got the best of me this time but watch out because it won't happen again." Ino says good-naturedly.

"Yeah Sakura you rock!" Naruto says while giving her a thumbs up.

"Thanks guys… but if I'm the winner then why am I covered in the most paint?" She asks wryly.

"Well at least you get to pick what we're going to do tomorrow so… it's not all bad." Ino says, stifling a giggle.

"Yeah Sakura, so what do you want to do tomorrow?" Naruto asks eagerly. Rin, Ino, and Sakura were all his best friends. Even though some of the other guys teased him about it because they were all girls, Kiba especially found it hilarious for some dumb reason or another, but he didn't care he loved spending time with them no matter what it was they did.

"Hmmm… well- Hey I know, isn't that Princess Gale movie coming out, we can all go see that!" Sakura says excitedly.

Sakura usually chose the most normal activities that they did, which even Quinn had to admit were a nice break from all of the training. She and Naruto almost always chose to do some kind of training activity, while Ino tended to be fifty-fifty on the issue. Half the time wanting to work on some kind of ninja training and half the time wanting to do something a little more normal like visit different shops or go to a movie.

"Sure, sounds good. I've wanted to see it for a while now." Ino says.

"Yeah, sounds like fun." Quinn agrees.

Naruto however remains silent.

"What's the matter Naruto, don't you want to see it?" Sakura asks.

"Um… I do but um… I kind of used up all of my play money on the materials for the paint pellets. Poor Gama-chan is starving!" Naruto pouts, pulling out his frog wallet and shaking it out onto his hand, a single one ryo coin falling out.

"Don't worry about it, I've got you covered." Sakura says with a smile. "Fair is fair, you paid for the paint pellets, the rest of us can cover your movie expenses." They were all aware that Naruto was living off the orphan's fund and so he had to budget his money carefully.

"Thanks... I just… I feel bad, you guys are always helping me out like that…"

"That's what friends are for, we know you'd do the same for us." Quinn says ruffling his hair playfully.

Naruto ducks out from under her. "Thanks. Well it's getting a little late, I'd probably better go, I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"Do you want to stay for dinner, Naruto?" Quinn asks.

"Nah, I'm good tonight, thanks though." He says with a wave as he takes off.

Ino sighs, "Well I know Rin's going to be all boring and spend the rest of the night practicing her fire manipulation," Quinn just shrugs, not disagreeing, "so how about it Sakura, do you want to stay for dinner and hang out for a little longer?" Ino asks.

"I can't." Sakura says regretfully. "I have a couple of relatives coming over for dinner tonight and my parents expect me to be there. I'm really very excited, really, you can tell by the smile on my face." She says with a painfully fake smile.

"Alright then we'll see you tomorrow."

"Well you two are a mess." Their mother says with a laugh after Sakura leaves. "Did you two have fun?"

"Definitely." Ino says while Quinn nods her agreement.

"Hey mom, we were wanting to go see the Princess Gale movie tomorrow with Naruto and Sakura is that okay?" Quinn asks.

"Of course, now why don't you two use the hose over there to wash up and then come inside, your father should be home soon and dinner is almost ready."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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 _There was blood and shattered glass all around her. She was stuck, paralyzed from the neck down and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't move. Her body was stuck in the wreckage of a twisted and mutilated car that was slowly burning all around her. She couldn't feel anything but she could see her skin melt and peel off of her body from the intensity of the flames. Then a black flame appears before her and begins to twist and morph itself into a form she recognized._

 _Rachel._

 _"How could you possibly think I would ever even care about you, let alone love you? This crash is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I never have to worry about you coming into my life ever again." Rachel sneers before her form disappears back into the black flame, which twists and splits before transforming into Brittany and Santana._

 _"Look San, she's dying, does this mean we can stop pretending to care about her?"_

 _"Yes, thank fucking God. Do you have any idea how hard it was to be near you? You're poison Quinn, you destroy everything you touch. Good riddance."_

 _Quinn is desperate to say something, anything, to plead with them. Beg them to forgive her and save her. But she can't even make a sound, her mouth isn't working._

 _Brittany and Santana morph and recombine into her mother Judy._

 _"I'm free, I'm finally free. You are no longer here to drag me down. I can't believe it, after all this time, I'm done with you. I hope your new family knows about the kind of pain and misery you brought into your last one?" Judy shrugs, "Well I'm sure they'll figure it out eventually."_

 _Judy morphs into her father Russell. "You are a disgrace."_

 _Her father morphs into Mercedes. "You deserve this."_

 _Mercedes morphs into Finn. "After everything you did… finally, finally you get what's coming to you."_

 _On and on this goes, the black fire shifting and transforming into the people that she knew and loved right before her eyes. Each of them telling her how much she deserves to die, each of them telling her how much better off they are without her and how worthless she is. Quinn is crying by this point but it comes out silent as she still can't make a sound. The surrounding flames have completely engulfed her. She wants to beg and plead for their forgiveness, for their help, but she can't and then suddenly they're gone._

 _And standing in their place is a three year old Ino, only it's not Ino, it's Beth. Beth smiles at her and then walks away, and Quinn can feel her heart shatter. Please, please come back, don't go! She wants to call out but she can't._

 _Then her family, the Yamanaka's, are standing in front of her watching her burn and die. Her father looks at her, a sickening rage in his eyes. "You've been lying to us from the very beginning. How dare you do this, how dare you come into my family and take advantage of us!"_

 _Somehow Quinn finds her voice. "Daddy… please…help me." She chokes out._

 _"Don't you dare call me that, I am not your father!" He snarls, turning away from her._

 _"I feel so violated. My skin is crawling and I don't know how I'll ever get over this. You came into my home, you dared to call me mother knowing what you know, knowing you weren't really my daughter. What kind of sick and twisted person does that?" Her mother sneers as she turns away._

 _"Mommy… mommy please…" Quinn sobs, but her cries fall on deaf ears._

 _"Did you ever really care about me? Or was that all part of your twisted game?" Ino says softly "I loved you, you were my sister, my twin!" Ino screams._

 _"I do, I love you… I love you so much…" Is Quinn's broken reply, "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"_

 _"It's too late, I don't care. I hope you die so that I never have to see you ever again." Ino says her voice laced with venom._

 _"No!" Quinn screams "Please, please, don't leave me!" She wails._

 _Suddenly everything is black. There is no car, no wreckage, just her floating along in an abyss of black nothingness. Her skin is blackened and charcoaled, the flames having burned her entirely beyond recognition and the scent of burning flesh and flames fills her nostrils, it's then that she realizes that the blackness isn't empty, it's made wholly of that black fire. Quinn screams in agony as she begins to feel the worst pain she has ever experienced. A searing, unnatural heat that was scorching her to the very core of her being._

 _She can hear footsteps walking towards her, she looks over, her eyelids long since burned and melted away and she sees a figure cloaked in darkness, untouched by the flames, and with a single red eye that seemed to stare right into her soul as he walks towards her. His vile chakra twisting and weaving through the air around him as it makes its way towards her. They lock eyes with each other and for a moment time stands still and then his vile chakra comes racing towards her. Her screams of terror and agony fill the air as the figure begins to call out her name._

 _Quinn._

 _"Quinn!"_

 _"Rin!"_

"Rin, wake up!"

Quinn's eyes shoot open as she screams at the top of her lungs, her voice hoarse. Her body feeling as if it were on fire. She looks around wildly as she feels a pair of strong arms wrapped around her, restraining her.

"No, no, let me go! Please, no, don't hurt me! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" She sobs and pleads as the arms continue to hold her tightly.

"Sweetheart calm down, it's me. It's your father, you're okay, you're okay."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Inoichi and Megumi had immediately come rushing into their daughters' room when they had heard Rin screaming in terror. When they got there they saw Ino standing over her sister desperately trying to shake her awake. Megumi pulls a scared Ino back and to her, holding her close as they watch Inoichi pick Rin up and cradle her to him.

"Rin. Sweetheart, wake up." He says gently shaking her, noting that she's unnaturally hot to the touch, but it's no use. Rin continues to thrash and cry in terror, trapped in her nightmare, her chakra starting to flare up and swirl around her uncontrollably.

"Rin, Rin, wake up, you're okay, you're safe." Inoichi says as he begins to gently rock her, he tries pulsing his chakra like he used to when she was a baby, hoping that might reach her and calm her down. "Rin, wake up. Please Rin." Suddenly her screams go from ones belonging to someone who is frightened to someone who is in incredible pain.

"Rin, wake up!" He shouts.

Rin's eyes shoot open as she screams at the top of her lungs, her voice hoarse. Her eyes dart around wildly, not actually seeing what's around her, as she struggles to get free. But he's afraid to let her go, she's thrashing about so bad that she could hurt herself. His baby girl is in pain and he has to help her.

"No, no, let me go! Please, no, don't hurt me! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" She sobs and pleads as he continues to hold her gently and firmly in his arms. She sounds so broken and lost right now that it makes him feel sick to his stomach.

"Sweetheart calm down, it's me. It's your father, you're okay, you're okay." He whispers to her gently, slowly rocking them both back and forth as she begins to settle down.

"Daddy…?" She whimpers, her voice broken and confused.

"Yeah it's me sweetheart, I'm right here."

She clings to him and begins to cry even harder, but at the very least there's none of the madness anymore.

Megumi and Ino slowly make their way over as well and when Megumi places her hand gently on Rin's head, her head snaps away from Inoichi to look at her and for a moment it's like she doesn't even recognize her.

"Mommy…?" she whimpers.

"I'm right here baby." She coos, softly placing a kiss to Rin's forehead, masking a frown when she notices how unnaturally hot Rin's skin feels. It was a dry heat though, not clammy enough to be a fever.

"I'm here too." Ino whispers as she reaches over and carefully holds one Rin's hands in her own and then does something she hadn't done since they were both babies. She pulses her chakra, trying to send good and comforting emotions to her little sister.

"Please don't leave me?" Rin sobs, "Please… please don't go, please…"

"We're not going anywhere." Megumi whispers as she begins to gently stroke Rin's hair. They stay close by, not moving away until after Rin has fallen back asleep in Inoichi's arms.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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The first thing that Quinn noticed as she regained consciousness was that she was warm. Incredibly, comfortably, warm. The next thing she noticed was just how tired she still was. Then the memories of her dream come rushing back and she can't help the whimper that escapes, she's able to recall it all in perfect detail.

"Hey, it's okay. Your big sister is here." She can hear Ino whisper softly to her.

Quinn's eyes flutter open and she realizes that she is still in bed. Ino is sitting there next to her giving her a gentle smile, worry etched on her face. "Hey, you're finally awake." She says as she reaches down and pushes Quinn's bangs out of her eyes. "I'm so glad, you've slept almost all day. Let me go get mom." Ino says but as she moves to stand up the vision of Ino turning away from her comes searing through Quinn's mind.

Quinn reaches out and grabs Ino's hand and winces, her body aches, her muscles and bones burning, but she pushes through and ignores it. "Please don't leave me." She begs, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm not going anywhere." Ino is quick to reassure her as she sits back down and Quinn visibly relaxes.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Ino asks as she continues to pet Quinn's hair.

Quinn shakes her head, she doesn't want to even think about the dream let alone talk about it.

"Are you sure, it might make you feel better." Ino encourages.

Quinn is silent for a long time, not saying a word or making a sound. But Ino doesn't move from her spot, continuing to pet her sister's head, not knowing what else to do or say but determined to be there for her.

"I was dying." Quinn finally speaks up. "I couldn't move or speak… nothing, I… I was just lying there broken…burning alive…"

"Oh Rin…"

"And suddenly everyone I've ever met… ever cared for was there… but nobody cared, no one, they were all happy… happy that I was dying. They were all so much better off without me and happy, finally happy because I wasn't going to be there anymore."

"Now you know for sure that it was just some stupid dream because you have so many people who love you, me most of all." Ino says as she leans down and places a kiss on her sister's forehead.

"You were happy too, you deserve so… so much better-"

"That's enough of that." Ino interrupts, "You are my sister, my twin, I could never ever be happy again if something were to happen to you. We're two halves of the same whole, I love you and don't you ever doubt that."

"You don't know…"

"It doesn't matter. There is nothing you could ever say or do to change how I feel about you, nothing. Now I'm going to get mom, so she can check on you and then I'll be right back, okay?"

Quinn nods her head and watches as her sister leaves, yet despite Ino's words Quinn still felt sick inside. Ino didn't know, she didn't know the truth about her, how she was this parasite that had somehow snuck into their life and was feeding off of them. She tried her best to be good enough for them, to maybe even it out but there was no changing the fact that she was lying to her family.

It was more than that too though, not since she had arrived here in this world had she dreamed of the car wreck before and never in such vivid detail, so why now? Ten years, ten years without giving it serious thought, but that was where her nightmare had decided to manifest her. And she hadn't imagined the pain that those black flames had caused her either. She could still feel the ache and the heat echoing through her body. And finally, the figure, the shadowy figure with the red eye and that chakra so vile that it seemed to corrupt and destroy everything around it. She had felt that chakra before, back right before the demon fox had attacked the village.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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"What happened?" Megumi whispers quietly as she gets up to greet Inoichi. She was in the girls' room watching over them when Inoichi had finally come home. He had been summoned directly to the Hokage's early that morning, a team of ANBU arriving to escort him, and it was now almost two in the morning. "Are you okay, what's going on, where were you all day?"

Inoichi motions for her to follow him out of the room. "We're going to start informing the public tomorrow but there was an incident last night." His voice low and urgent.

"What was it?"

"Itachi Uchiha turned rogue and slaughtered his entire clan."

Megumi gasps and covers her mouth, the Uchiha were arguably the most powerful clan in the village, for one person to be able to kill them all was unimaginable. The power they would have to have to be able to do that was almost overwhelming to think about. "He killed them all?"

"No, not everyone, he left his brother alive, Sasuke. He's in the girls' class at the academy I believe. We're not sure exactly what happened, we only know that the entire Uchiha clan was found dead this morning except for him. He was mostly comatose so I spent all day carefully going through the boy's mind trying to gather information without hurting him. He only came out of it about an hour ago. I'll be spending the next while assessing him as well to see if he's stable enough to even continue in the shinobi program."

"It's that bad?"

"He saw his entire family murdered and he was placed under the effects of a powerful genjutsu, there's no telling what kind of long term effects this might have on him. The Sandaime wants me to handle it personally."

"That poor boy, what's going to happen to him?"

"That's not for me to say, technically he's now the head of an all but extinct clan, the Hokage and his advisors are handling it personally, and a lot of things are being made classified, even above me. I…" Inoichi hesitates. "You won't be happy but I brought up Rin's nightmare with the Hokage when we had a moment alone."

"What! Why?" Megumi asks.

"The last time Rin acted like this was the night of the Kyuubi attack, and I think the same thing happened last night."

"Yes but… but that was, she was just a baby back then. She didn't know how to control her sensor abilities."

"Exactly, and now she does and her abilities have only grown. The only thing I can think of that might have caused her to react like that is she must have picked up on all of the death and fear that was going on last night. Her chakra was reacting to it, when I was holding her… she felt like she was burning up… I just… I was so scared for her and I just don't know what to do for her? I was hoping maybe he could help."

"Well we've always known she was a bit… different, especially considering how little we know of her origins or her abilities… I don't know maybe we should talk to her, tell her the truth? Maybe get her insight into it? I mean I know we were worried about how she might react if she ever found out but… is it right to keep something like this from her? That she wasn't conceived but that she was instead created by chakra?" It was something that they had both struggled with doing, keeping this secret from Rin. But if strange things kept happening to her, some kind of explanation might be a comfort.

Inoichi shakes his head. "Can you imagine how damaging that might be to her as well, how horrifying? She could very well take it that she isn't real or that she isn't ours. We can't tell her, we can't place that kind of burden on her. She's our daughter, it doesn't matter, it's irrelevant and all telling her would do is place an unnecessary burden on her. No, she's better off not knowing."

"And what about the Third, what's he going to be able to do for her that we can't?" Megumi asks.

"I don't know… but she needs help, and I don't know if we can give it to her."


	9. Chapter 8

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Glee. So early post today, since tomorrow is Christmas. So Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, or you know, just enjoy your Thursday/Friday if you aren't inclined to celebrate ;-) Anyways, hope you all enjoy this chapter.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 8-xXx**

 **s**

It had been three long days since her nightmare and no matter how hard she tried she just couldn't seem to shake it off. It had struck her at her very core, hitting every anxiety, every fear she had. And if that wasn't bad enough, the red-eyed figure in the black flames continued to haunt her dreams. She had sensed that chakra once before. On the night of the Kyuubi's attack, she had felt it. A chakra so vile that it had taken an honest to God demon to overcome it.

She knew her family was worried about her and she tried to put on a brave front, but she was well aware that she wasn't fooling anyone. But it wasn't like she could talk to anyone about it either. She could tell them about what she dreamed, about the figure and how everyone was better off without her, and they could try to comfort her, tell her that the figure was just her imagination, how they loved her, except… The figure was real. She could feel it in her bones, she had sensed its chakra twice now. Once was a coincidence, but twice was too much to ignore.

And no matter how much she wanted to she couldn't fully accept their words on how much they loved her either… they didn't know her, not really. They knew Rin Yamanaka, they didn't know Quinn Fabray. Rin Yamanaka was a member of their family, Rin was a sister and a daughter and a friend who was well loved, but Quinn… Quinn was poison to everything she touched and Quinn was who she was at her core. Quinn wanted and craved the love that Rin received but would never get and she knew that she didn't deserve it either.

She had decided to go for a walk around the Yamanaka clan's land. It wasn't the largest part of Konoha but Quinn had always thought it pretty and peaceful. It certainly wasn't as big as the Uchiha compound or the Hyuuga compound and it was only about a third of the size of the Nara's lands. It was just a couple of acres of forested area with meadows scattered within and a small stream that ran through it.

The Yamanaka's weren't a huge clan either, not anymore, their numbers having been starting to dwindle a bit over the last few generations, so it was quite easy to find yourself alone out here. When she finally reaches the stream she sits down on a large rock that Quinn figured had been put there for just that reason. It was just so out of place that she had a hard time imagining it being there naturally.

This was her training area. A couple meters away was her poor old tree that was just starting to recover from her efforts to learn tree climbing, and the ground near the edge of the stream was scorched from all of her fire ninjutsu training. Her father had brought her some chakra affinity paper and she had learned that fire was her natural affinity which meant fire jutsu were the easiest type of ninjutsu for her to learn. Plus, and if she was being completely honest, she really thought they were kind of cool too.

Normally she would start training as soon as she got here, either going through different Taijutsu katas that she had learned or practicing her ninjutsu or chakra control or something along those lines. But today she just didn't have it in her. She needed to clear her head so she gets into a meditation position and closes her eyes.

Back in her old world she had thought the concept of meditation to be a little hokey. Having never tried it back then she couldn't say if she was right or not but here in this world it definitely had its merits. When she was old enough and her parents really started teaching her how to suppress her chakra and her sensory abilities, for the longest time, meditation was the only way for her to successfully do it.

She had learned a couple of ways to go about it and had heard many suggestions on how to get into a meditative state. People here talked about meditation like they did flu remedies or getting rid of the hiccups. Everybody had a technique that they swore up and down was the best. The one that she used was the one that her mother had taught her, you imagined yourself sitting on top of a crystal clear lake. The sky dark and full of stars but it's still as bright as day. The world is completely silent. Once your world is constructed, you begin to breathe in slowly and deeply and with every exhale you imagine a drop of water hitting the lake right in front of you. The sound of the drop hitting the lake echoes all around you. You then allow the sound to pull you into a meditative state.

Her father's method involved just clearing his mind of all thoughts and not allowing himself to focus on anything. He had the self-control to be able to do that but her mind always felt like it was in a whirlwind. Ino pictured herself in a field of yellow flowers with one purple one growing right in front of her, she then focused on the purple flower to the exclusion of everything else. Both great techniques, neither of them worked for her.

It always took her a while to reach that meditative state, she didn't meditate nearly as much as she should so she was a bit out of practice and with everything going on in her head right now it would have been difficult anyway. But eventually the chirping of the nearby birds disappears and the bubbling of the stream as it courses along fades away and soon all there is, is herself and the steady rhythm of the water droplets. Her mind is quiet for the first time in days.

This was it, this was the peace and quiet that she needed to get herself put back together. It was just a dream… only a dream. She lets out a sigh of relief, finally feeling a semblance of peace as she loses herself into her meditation. Time loses all meaning and she allows herself to get lost in the stillness that meditation provides.

Just as she thinks that she is in the clear she feels something dark and sinister creeping up in the back of her mind. The stars in her mind begin to dim and disappear, the light around her going out as black flames begin to rise up from the water which begins to boil. The evil presence of that chakra returns.

" _Don't you dare call me that, I am not your father!"_

Quinn flinches but doesn't break her concentration. Trying to regain control of her mind.

" _What kind of sick and twisted person does that?"_

Her mother's voice echoes around her. She tries to douse the flames in the water, but it does no good, somehow the black flame devours the water as well.

" _Did you ever really care about me?"_

The fire begins to race towards her, she raises a wall of the already boiling water to surround her and protect herself but it's instantly dispersed by the flames which then charge at her, taking the form of various beasts and monsters. She can feel her body heating up as the flames reach her.

"Hey Rin."

Quinn jerks awake, sitting up startled as her heart is racing. Had she fallen asleep? It was something that could occur when you meditated… still it was a little embarrassing. She looks around and sees a smiling Sakura coming over to her.

"Hey Rin, we've missed you the past couple of days." Sakura says as she jumps up onto the rock and sits next to her.

"Hey Sakura." Quinn says smiling weakly, rather grateful that the girl showed up when she did. At least it broke her from that nightmare.

"Are you okay, you're looking a little red there, did you fall asleep out in the sun?" Sakura asks.

"What?" Quinn pauses for a second and realizes that she does in fact feel a little warm and her body slightly aches, but she is already starting to cool down. "Oh, yeah… must have, but I'm fine."

"I'm glad."

"So how are things at the academy?" Quinn asks, trying to make small talk and get the focus off of herself.

"It was fine, Sasuke came back today." Sakura says with a slight frown. "He's so different now… well duh, after what happened why wouldn't he be… it was just hard to see. I feel so sad for him."

Quinn nods her head in agreement. Ino had filled her in on what had happened, apparently Sasuke's brother had killed his entire clan. She couldn't imagine going through something like that. "Yeah…"

The two of them sit in silence for a couple of minutes before Sakura speaks up again. "So how are you feeling? You're looking good, are you finally getting over your cold?"

Quinn's parents had allowed her stay home for the rest of the week, her reaction to her nightmare having scared them too. A mental health holiday they had called it, using a cold as an excuse. Her scores were more than high enough that she could afford to take some time off. "Yeah I'm feeling much better, thank you for asking."

"I'm glad, school's not quite the same without you." Sakura says softly.

"Really?"

"Yeah, it's weird but it's like… I don't know, I just like it when we're all together. You, Ino, me, and Naruto, we're all friends. It just feels weird when one of us is gone."

Quinn smiles and gently bumps her shoulder to Sakura's in gratitude. "I've missed you guys too."

"Plus with you gone it's just me versus Naruto and Ino and while I love them both to death… they're both so loud."

Quinn laughs, "Yeah, I guess they can get a little rowdy at times."

Sakura smiles, "Exactly, but you and me, we're a little more quiet. It balances out."

"So where are Ino and Naruto?" Quinn asks curiously.

Sakura laughs, "Naruto convinced us to help him pull a prank in the teacher's lounge. I got out clean but Ino and Naruto got caught."

Quinn snorts, "Really, how'd he manage to do that?"

"He guilted us into it, he said that you would've helped him, but that with you gone he was all alone."

Quinn rolls her eyes because no she wouldn't have. "That boy." She says fondly.

"Yeah, Ino and I didn't buy it for a moment either but he's been really down since you've been out sick so we wanted to cheer him up."

"Plus you like a good prank too, admit it." Quinn teases.

Sakura just giggles in response.

"So what did you guys do?"

"We put black dye in the coffee turning anyone who drank its teeth black. Completely harmless and hey its good training too, I mean what if we had been assassins with poison. Really if they got hit then they deserve it, they should have been more diligent." Sakura says with a smirk, playfully justifying their actions.

"Who did you get?" Quinn asks laughing.

"Iruka-sensei, Mizuki-sensei, and Suzumi-sensei. Mizuki-sensei had a good laugh about it, said it was pretty clever but Iruka-sensei and Suzumi-sensei were pissed."

"Well Iruka-sensei is in charge of the class and has to put up with these kinds of things the most so it's understandable, plus it's his coffee and I think there's almost something sacrilegious about messing with someone's coffee. And Suzumi-sensei has never had much of a sense of humor." Quinn says. "So how did those two get caught but not you?"

Sakura rolls her eyes, "They forgot to wear gloves so they had dye all over their hands, I didn't forget, thus here I am. I was going to turn myself in too, you know, it didn't seem fair for them to get in trouble but not me since I did help them but none of us wanted you to be alone so they covered for me and I came here instead."

"Well since you're here, do you want to get some training in?" Quinn asks, grateful for the other girl's company.

Sakura hesitates. "I don't know… are you up for it, you are just getting over a cold."

Quinn stands up and offers her hand to Sakura helping her stand. "I think a little training is just the thing to get me going."

Sakura can feel her face heat up when she takes Rin's hand. She always got butterflies in her stomach when she thought of the other girl. It was strange and she didn't quite understand it, it was the same feeling she got when she used think of Sasuke, which was really weird because it wasn't like she had these same feelings around Ino, but there was just something about Rin. "Alright, but don't expect me to go easy on you."

Quinn smirks and the two girls jump down from the rock across from each other. Both of them taking a fighting stance. Quinn takes a moment and releases the careful hold she usually keeps on her sensor abilities. In a fight it made her near impossible to sneak up on so it was good to practice using it while in a combat situation. It also had the added benefit of forcing her friends to get clever when facing her, because none of them were capable of sneaking up on her with it released. However when she releases it she pauses, a powerful chakra signature was on their way to her house, as vast and as deep as an ocean and completely serene. She gets out of her fighting stance and stares in the direction it is coming from.

"Rin, what's up, aren't we going to spar?" Sakura questions.

"Someone is coming."

"Who?" Sakura asks.

"I don't know, but they're strong… stronger than even my parents."

Quinn hears Sakura gulp nervously and she chuckles lightly while giving Sakura a reassuring smile. "Sorry, that came out much more ominous than I meant it too. They're not coming to hurt us, I don't sense any malice from them. They're just strong, that's all."

"What should we do?" Sakura asks.

"Nothing, they've stopped at the house, my mom is there and so is dad. Mom is a little surprised and a little nervous but dad is pretty calm. Everything seems okay, it's probably just something work related, dad gets visitors all of the time."

"Wow…" Sakura mutters. She knew that Rin was a sensor-nin, and a powerful one at that, but to be able to sense something from that far away and to be able to pick up their emotions was incredible.

"So, shall we get started?" Quinn asks getting back into her fighting stance.

"Sure." She chirps, getting back into her own stance. The two girls stare each other down, looking for an opening and with a shout Sakura charges in.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Sakura was breathing heavily, feeling exhausted but still smiling having spent the last half an hour facing off against the other girl. The fact of the matter was that she never felt more alive than when she was sparring with Rin. It always pushed her to the limit and it forced her to be better. It wasn't like when she sparred with Ino who was not only her best friend but her rival, facing against Ino was all about seeing how far she had come, but with Rin it was like facing off against a mentor. Someone who only wanted for her to be as strong as she could possibly be. When she had first started in the academy she was strictly a middle of the pack kunoichi. She excelled in the mental and theoretical aspects of being a ninja but her capabilities in the practical and physical side left much to be desired.

That was changing though. Because of her continual efforts in training with Rin, Ino, and Naruto over the past couple of years she was now fifth in her class. Only Rin, Sasuke, Shino, and Ino were ranked higher and in that order and she was only getting better. What really truly held her back was her small chakra reserves. She had near perfect chakra control to help make up for it but it didn't change the fact that her reserves were almost laughably low.

But she made do with what she had and did the best that she could and it was definitely paying off. She still couldn't get Sasuke to notice her, but considering all he was going through that didn't seem like it was going to happen anyway. Though the thought didn't bother her as much as it might once have, because it wasn't just about him, not anymore at least, she wanted her friends to be proud of her as well, she wanted to be able to keep up with them.

"I'm always so amazed by how much you improve every time we face off, and your Taijutsu forms are flawless." Rin praises her.

Sakura blushes, feeling her heart swell at Rin's praise. "Thanks…"

Rin gets out of her fighting stance indicating that they're finished and so Sakura does the same. "I'll never understand why you don't focus in that area. You're so good at it and you seem to enjoy it a lot."

Sakura looks down. "Well… it's just that… all of our teachers say that I have such great chakra control you know, so they always suggest Genjutsu or Fuinjutsu… I mean I do enjoy Taijutsu, I love it actually but… I don't know, I'm not very strong or fast, at least not enough to really go anywhere with it. So I just do what I need to in order to get by."

"Do you like Genjutsu or Fuinjutsu?" Rin asks her and Sakura takes a moment to consider the question. "They're useful."

"Yeah but do you enjoy them."

"They're what I'm good at, at least according to our instructors, I'm not like you, I can't just pick something up and do it. I have to stick to my strengths." Sakura says with a shrug.

"You could get stronger and faster though, just because you're not there now doesn't mean you couldn't be. I mean just think about how much you've improved since we all first started training together. You could do it if you wanted to and I think that if you're going to pursue something then it should be something you love you know. You're eyes just seem to light up whenever we spar and you always seem to pay such close attention during Taijutsu lessons, I just always figured that was where your passion lay."

"She has a point you know." A gentle, elderly man's voice calls out. Both she and Rin look over and walking towards them with a genial smile on his face is Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage. Both she and Rin bow respectfully.

"If you can forgive me for intruding on your conversation, but Miss Yamanaka has a point. While there is certainly ample reason to play to your strengths it's been my personal experience that the ninjas who thrive are the ones who follow their passions. If Taijutsu is where that lies then you should pursue it with everything you have and that is how you will become strong. If it isn't where your strength currently lies…" The Hokage pauses in front of them before placing a hand on her shoulder, gazing into her eyes, "Then work on it until it does."

"Do you really think I could do it? Be a Taijutsu master I mean." Sakura asks, very much in awe. She had only ever seen the Sandaime up close once before and that was during their initiation into the academy.

"Oh- ho," He chuckles, "Does it really matter what I think, I want to know, what do you think?"

She pauses, could she do it? She had always been labeled as only just adequate in that area. That her strengths as a ninja were not going to be in the physical arts but in other areas. But… to be honest, she didn't have the patience for Fuinjutsu and she thought Genjutsu was kind of boring. She didn't have the chakra reserves for heavy Ninjutsu either, but she was okay with that. And there had always been something about Taijutsu that spoke to her, the way a person who was really truly talented at it could make their bodies do amazing things, the grace, agility, the power. Could she do it, could she become a Taijutsu master in-spite of others saying she couldn't or shouldn't?

Looking into the kind and confident eyes of the Sandaime she had her answer. "Yes, definitely. I'll be the best this village has ever seen, just watch me." She says, not sure where this sudden surge of confidence was coming from but she can feel it grow and swell within her.

The Hokage hums to himself as if he's pleased with her answer. "Then I have no doubt in my mind that you will achieve your goal. But now that you've told me this I plan to keep an eye out on you Sakura Haruno, so work hard."

"Yes sir, I will. Believe it!" Her eyes widen in horror as she realizes she'd just used Naruto's catch phrase, and she can hear Rin start to giggle almost uncontrollably beside her while the Hokage laughs as well.

"Hmmm, I can see it in your eyes Miss Haruno, a burning passion, a desire to improve and to grow. A willingness to work hard and never give up. You have the will of fire within you and such a thing must be cultivated wouldn't you agree Miss Yamanaka?" He asks Rin, an amused glint in his eyes, he was also quite familiar with Naruto's phrase.

Rin looks a little startled at being addressed for a second before she looks at her. The look on her face and in her eyes saying that she has all of the confidence in the world for her friend. "Definitely."

Sakura smiles brightly at that. The Third Hokage believed in her, but not only that, Rin believed in her. It never crossed her mind to consider why that one meant so much more to her than the other, all she could focus on was that the strongest ninja in the village and someone that she really truly admired believed in her. She wouldn't let them down.

"Well then Miss Haruno, I would like to help you take the first step in your endeavors to reach your goal. There is someone I would like to introduce you to, he's out on a mission currently and he's taken on another student already but I'm sure if I ask him to he'll be more than happy to give you a few pointers. He should be back sometime this week, I'll be sure to have him get in contact with you. He's a little… eccentric, but he really knows his stuff so pay attention to what he has to say. Until then do what you can on your own and don't give up."

Sakura feels her heart skip a beat. "Ah- I mean of course I won't and that- that would be wonderful Lord Hokage, I… I don't know what to say, thank you. Thank you so much."

"It's my pleasure. As the Hokage it is my duty and my honor to help strengthen the next generation of ninja, and I'll tell you now, I see big things in your future."

She blinks back the tears as she's feeling a little overly emotional right now. "Thank you Lord Hokage." She says bowing. "I won't let you down."

"I'm sorry to ask this Lord Hokage… and please forgive my rudeness but why are you here?" Rin asks curiously.

"Oh right!" The Sandaime snaps his fingers as if just remembering. "Miss Yamanaka, I was wondering if I might have a word with you in private."

Rin pales considerably and Sakura is flooded with worry. "She's not in trouble is she?" Sakura asks anxiously. After all why would the Hokage come here to visit Rin?

"No, of course not, but the topic is a bit sensitive in nature, however after we've finished if she wishes to share what we talked about with her friends and family then it is certainly fine with me." The Third says reassuringly.

"I-" Rin hesitates, "Of course Lord Hokage." Rin turns to her and smiles, and once again the familiar butterflies flit about Sakura's stomach. "Sorry to cut this short Sakura, but I really am glad you came. I'll try to be at school tomorrow with Ino okay?"

"Alright, um well then, I'll just head out and I'll see you tomorrow okay Rin." Sakura then steps forward and hugs her friend before turning to the Hokage and bowing. "It was a pleasure to see you as well Lord Hokage and thank you once again."

"The pleasure was all mine dear girl and remember, I'm expecting great things from you."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Once Sakura is out of sight Quinn turns to the Sandaime. "Thank you for your words of kindness, Sakura sometimes lacks confidence in herself, your words meant a lot to her."

The third smiles as he stares in the direction that Sakura had left in. "I meant every word I said. Miss Haruno's rate of progress has been quite fast for someone still in the academy. To jump from fifteenth in her class to fifth is almost unheard of. She has a lot of potential. So do a couple of other students I could name." He says with a smile as he turns to look at her.

"I keep a close eye on the students of the academy, one day they will be under my command and it is important that I know how they are progressing. One Naruto Uzumaki, for example, has gone from the dead last in the class to number twelve and your sister has gotten into the top five as well, fourth in her class and showing no sign of slowing down. That kind of progress deserves special attention as well as careful guidance."

Quinn smiles as she thinks about the progress her sister and her friends have made. She wanted them to be strong, truly strong. If they weren't going to quit this life then she wanted them to be the best, stronger than her or anyone else. "They're amazing, they really are." Quinn says.

"But they aren't the only ones, I've heard a great deal about you Miss Yamanaka and I must confess that I've been hoping to speak with you for some time now."

"Me?" Quinn asks shocked.

"Yes, your father has mentioned your nightmare to me, and considering the timing and its contents I figured now would be as good a time as any to speak to you."

"My nightmare?" Quinn asks confused and nervous. "Why do you want to know about that, it was just a bad dream?" She didn't buy that for a moment, a dream shouldn't be causing her to react the way she did, and from the look he gave her the Sandaime didn't believe it either. It would be nice to figure out what the dream was about and the black fire but she was afraid that if she talked too much then someone would figure out who and what she really was.

"Please Miss Yamanaka, you don't believe that any more than I do. I only wish to help, scan me if you wish, I'm told that your ability allows you to not only locate someone but also to read their emotions."

Quinn shakes her head. "I sensed you when you were at my house, I didn't feel anything wrong with you, I just… I don't really want to talk about it. It wasn't all that pleasant."

"I understand, but I heard something that made me a bit curious and I may be able to help." He offers.

Quinn thinks about it for a moment, it would be nice to get some answers, figure out who the man with the vile chakra was, and maybe find a way to stop this from happening again. And the Third Hokage was a powerful and wise ninja, known throughout the nations by many different monikers including the Professor and the God of all Shinobi, due to his prowess in battle as well as his knowledge and so being very careful not to give anything away that might hint at her being from another world she tells him her dream.

"The figure in black, you say he had one single red eye and was surrounded by black flames?" He asks after she had finished, sounding both troubled and intrigued.

"Yes sir."

"Hmmm… and have you ever sensed this chakra before?" He asks her. Quinn does her best not to flinch or give away any reaction at that, because she has felt it before, back when the Kyuubi attacked, but she shouldn't know that or be able to remember it.

"No sir." She lies, telling the truth would only lead to some incredibly uncomfortable questions that she didn't want to have to answer.

"Hmmm, I see…" He trails off lost in thought.

"Lord Hokage, sir… do you know what's going on with me?"

The Hokage looks at her appraisingly, studying her, as if sizing her up for something. "What I am about to share with you is to be kept a secret between you and I. Consider it classified at level S, and that you are not to share what I am about to tell you with anyone, even your family, am I understood? If this is too much, just tell me and I'll stop here." He says to her very seriously.

Quinn gulps, her head screaming at her to refuse. That if it was this huge that he would order her to silence then she didn't need to know, but her desire for answers overwhelmed her common sense. "No, I understand. Please continue"

"Tell me, what do you know of Madara Uchiha?"

Quinn has to take a moment to think about it, thinking back to her early history lessons. "I believe he helped Hashirama Senju found Konoha, didn't he?"

"Yes, but there was more to it than that, he was one of the most powerful Shinobi to have ever lived, his strength was great enough that he could take on whole armies single-handedly. I knew him when I was a boy, well I had met him I should say as it's more accurate. His chakra was overwhelming to say the least, the only person who could match him and defeat him was the First Hokage. The two of them joined forces to found Konoha, but when Hashirama was made the First Hokage, Madara began to grow jealous of him and his spirit began to fill with bitterness and hate.

One day, he betrayed the village that he helped found. The First Hokage chased him down to try and convince him to come back and they fought. It was a battle between two titans the likes of which are unlikely to ever be seen again. It altered the very landscape on which it took place. When it was finally over the First Hokage was victorious and Madara Uchiha was dead… or so we believed."

"What do you mean?"

"Before he died, the Fourth Hokage was able to share with me that there was a person who was responsible for unleashing the Nine-Tailed Fox on the village twelve years ago, a person who claimed to be him."

Quinn's eyes widen in shock, "But that's… how is that possible?"

"How indeed, most would think to just dismiss his words as nothing but a lie, or the ravings of a madman, however only two people have ever been able to fully control the beast to my knowledge. The first being Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage who is long dead and the second person being Madara Uchiha. Whether the man was telling the truth or not I am uncertain, but the fact that he not only controlled the fox and forced it to attack the village, but also survived a fight with the Fourth Hokage certainly lends credence to his claims. Your description of the figure in the black fire with the vile chakra sounds like him as well."

"I was there the night he defected, I remember how dark his chakra felt as he and the first fought, even all the way back here at the village we could sense the two chakras clashing. The red eye could be only an aesthetic or it could be anyone one of a couple of doujutsus that cause the eye to turn red, but the black fire of your dream that seems to affect you even in the real world can only be one thing."

"What?" Quinn asks.

" **Amaterasu** , the ultimate fire release technique and only usable by the most powerful of members of the Uchiha clan. Legend has it that they stole the black fire from the very goddess of the sun herself and that nothing can quench its hunger, even if you were to drop it into the ocean it will continue to burn on for seven days and seven nights. The fact that it's affecting you from inside your dreams tells me that I am right about this."

"So what do I do?" Quinn asks softly, "Why is this happening to me?"

"If I had to guess I would say that the reason this is happening to you is because of your abilities as a sensor, not only are you able to detect people from great distances but you are also able to detect their emotions, correct?"

"Yes… but, how do you know all of this?"

"I told you, I keep an eye on the up and coming ninja in my village, also your father has spoken to me about it a bit as well?"

"Really?" Quinn asks nervously.

"Yes, he worries for you greatly, he worries that your ability may overwhelm you and that he'll be unable to protect you. He's asked for my advice on the matter a couple of times." The Hokage says with a reassuring smile. "He loves you dearly. You and your sister."

Quinn smiles at that, but it's a sad smile. She didn't deserve it.

"So my sensor abilities are why he's affecting me, does that mean he was in the village when the Uchiha clan was killed?" Quinn asks.

"The evidence certainly seems to point that way doesn't it and it makes much more sense than Itachi killing them all by himself. He is a very skilled and powerful shinobi without a doubt, but even he would have had trouble doing it all on his own and without alerting anyone, but if he had help from someone as powerful as Madara Uchiha was… well then, that makes a bit more sense. Not that this is a comforting thought mind you."

Quinn runs a hand through her hair. "Alright, well I guess that makes sense that I would detect him even when my ability is suppressed, especially if he's as powerful as you say but what about this black fire, **Amaterasu** , what about it? I've never actually seen the man and he's never used the jutsu on me so why am I dreaming about it?"

"Because of how the technique works and your ability to detect emotions. I don't think you quite comprehend just how unique your ability is. There are plenty of sensor types but the fact that you can pick up on emotions just by reading their chakra, and do so accurately is all but unheard of and your ability has only continued to grow. The **Amaterasu** is a technique that calls upon anger and hatred to use, and not just any kind of anger and hatred, it's the anger and hatred of a goddess who was robbed and is seeking retribution. When the technique was cast you picked up on the emotions involved and it infected you."

Quinn's head was spinning as she tried to make sense of everything she had just learned. It was just so much to take in that she didn't even know where to start. No, that wasn't true, she knew exactly where to start. "How do I make it stop?" She asks him.

He smiles at her, "By becoming stronger and by filling yourself with good emotions to counter balance the negative ones inside of you. The **Amaterasu** will feed off of the darkness inside of you and it will grow stronger and it will consume you if you let it, but if you fill your life with other things, things like love, hope, forgiveness, the **Amaterasu** cannot feed from those things and will instead burn itself out given time."

Quinn nods her head, easier said than done, she was well aware that she was a walking ball of negativity and self-doubt, but at least it was a start. "Thank you for telling me all of this Lord Hokage."

"I'm sorry that I had to, I know it's a lot to take in, but if it helps you then I'm glad. Actually, I would like to make you an offer, if you're willing to hear me out that is?"

"Of course Lord Hokage, what is it?"

"As I said before, I believe that it is the duty of the Hokage to help cultivate and improve the younger generation. I've heard great things about you from both your teachers as well as your father. He's quite proud of you as well."

Quinn is blushing. "I'm sure they're exaggerating…" she mumbles softly.

"Maybe… but I doubt it." He smiles warmly at her. "Your sister and your friends have improved dramatically and they have you to thank for it, you have gone out of your way to try and improve those around you and make them stronger, it seems only fitting that I do the same."

"Lord Hokage…?"

"How would you feel about once a week picking up an extra bit of training from me?"

Quinn's eyes widen in shock, there was no way in hell the Hokage had just said what she thought he did. Training with the Hokage, it was an opportunity that many people would pay anything for, do anything for, even kill for. There was no way that he was just offering this to her. He had to have some kind of ulterior motive for it, she was a nothing, a nobody. There had to be hundreds of other people more worthy of this opportunity than she was. She uses her ability to try and get a read on him and is shocked to discover that he is genuine. She could feel it radiating from him, a desire to see her get stronger. It just didn't make sense.

Quinn is brought back to reality by the sound of the Hokage's laughter, the mirth literally radiating off of him. "I can understand you being a little bit skeptical, I'm not exactly a spring chicken, but you still might be able to pick up a trick or two and I promise you that despite my age I'm still fairly competent." He says with a chuckle, mistaking her shock and silence, for skepticism.

"Oh! No! I mean, yes, I… it would be an honor sir, I just… I don't understand… why me?" It was an impertinent question she knew, but she couldn't help it.

However the Hokage doesn't seem offended, if anything he's even more amused. "The fact that you would think to even ask is a good place to start. Why you… well I would say because I think there is something special about you and I want to see what it is you can truly do."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Sweetheart, are you okay?" Megumi asks worriedly as she watches Rin come walking slowly up to the house lost in thought. When she looks up at the sound of Megumi's voice she seemed to be in a bit of a daze.

"Mom?"

Megumi rushes over to her daughter. She knew it was a bad idea to let the Sandaime talk to Rin, she knew they should have kept things in house. But when she gets to her daughter she can see that Rin is looking at her and smiling, it's kind of broken but it's also the first real smile she's seen in three days. "Baby?"

Rin moves into her arms and hugs her. "Thank you, thank you for everything… I… I'm going to be okay, I promise." She says, her voice soft and tight.

"I know that, you're so strong." Megumi says encouragingly.

Rin steps back and looks up at her, shaking her head. "No, no I'm not, not yet anyway, but please… be patient with me. I have a lot of things I need to work through… but, I promise, I'll get better and that I'll be worthy of you."

Megumi could feel her heart break at that statement. "Sweetheart, why would you ever think you aren't worthy of me? You are my daughter, my love isn't something you have to earn or be "worthy of," it's yours freely."

Rin just smiles at her but she doesn't say anything, instead just stepping back into hug her and burying her face into her chest. "Sweetheart, you're scaring me, where is all of this coming from?"

"I'm sorry mom, I'm sorry. I don't… I can't explain it, I want to, I want to so much, but I just can't. But what I can tell you is that I feel broken and poisonous inside and I need to work on that… can you please be patient with me?"

Megumi strokes her daughter's hair. She should tell her, she should tell her the truth of what they know about her origins. Tell her that she isn't broken or poisonous, she was just a little different, that's all. It's on the tip of her tongue when Rin looks up at her with the most hopeful expression that she had ever seen on her daughter's face. Inoichi was right, telling her the truth, it looked like it would break her.

"My brave girl." She says cupping her daughter's face in her hands. "You are not broken, you are not poisonous, but if you need time to discover that for yourself then you have all the time that you need. And I'll be right here waiting for you, ready and willing to tell you how truly special you are. I love you."


	10. Chapter 9

**Standard Disclaimer, I don't own Glee or Naruto. Hey everybody, happy New Year, I hope you all have a great day. And here is the next chapter of Will of Fire, enjoy :)**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 9-xXx**

 **s**

"What!" Naruto shouts jumping to his feet. "You're getting private lessons from the Old Man! Gah! I've asked him like a billion times and he's never said yes to me, that old goat! He's just terrified that I'm going to take that hat of his! Well guess what old man that won't- Oof!"

Sakura grabs the back of Naruto's jacket and yanks him back to the ground. "Quit yelling, you're making a scene." She huffs as she points out the rest of the students in the courtyard, all watching him.

"Oh, heh, heh… sorry." Naruto says sheepishly.

"Wow… I can't believe it, that's really cool sis." Ino says, not sure how she was really feeling about it. On the one hand she couldn't be prouder, Rin worked harder than anyone she knew and deserved this opportunity, on the other hand it just showed how much farther ahead of her Rin was. Rin was her little sister, how was she supposed to protect and look out for her if she couldn't keep up?

"Thanks, I'm kind of nervous though."

"Nah, you got this!" Naruto grins, giving her a thumbs up. "Hey, hey, hey, I know, once he's done teaching you, you should totally show us what you've learned!"

Quinn smiles at that, "That was the plan, after all this is only worthwhile if we can all grow strong together."

"Don't you worry about us," Ino says with a smile, "this is an amazing opportunity for you, so focus on that okay."

"Thanks Ino, but I want to share it with you guys, I love watching all of you work and improve. It helps keep me motivated. I wouldn't be anywhere near where I'm at right now if I didn't have you three to encourage me and help me."

"What are you talking about Rin, you're the strongest one here?" Sakura says, with Naruto and Ino nodding their agreement.

Quinn shakes her head. "I have things I'm good at but you guys far outclass me in other areas. Naruto, nobody knows how to plan and execute like you do and nobody thinks on their feet the way you do either. You're like the craftiest person I know. And Sakura, you're a genius, really. The smartest person I know and give it a bit of time you'll probably be the toughest too." Quinn praises them, Sakura is blushing and looking pleased with herself and Naruto is grinning scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

"And Ino, if we had to go on a mission right now, I would bet on you to succeed every time. You're clever and you understand how people work. You're really good at seeing to the heart of a situation and if that wasn't enough, you're knowledge of poisons and toxins makes you a scary opponent that I wouldn't ever want to fight."

"Says the girl who breathes fire." Ino teases, touched that her sister thought so highly of her and her skills. She wasn't as flashy or combat oriented as her sister and the others were and it was nice to know that she wasn't looked down upon.

"I'm just saying that we all have our strengths and I want us all to keep getting stronger together. Nobody gets left behind, we all help each other reach our full potential, okay?" Quinn finishes.

"Definitely." Ino agrees.

"Of course, we only got to where we are now by working together." Sakura adds.

"Nothing will ever stop us, believe it!" Naruto cheers.

Quinn loved the enthusiasm of her friends and her sister. It really did help. She was trying to fill her life with good emotions, that was what the Sandaime had said was the key to getting rid of the **Amaterasu** and so she was doing her best to focus on the good things.

Last night her dreams were once again invaded by Madara and his black flames. Her dreams were at the very least starting to return to normal, at least she wasn't in the car crash anymore. Last night's dream had started off in a field where it was just her and Naruto, and Naruto had a plan that he was going to open a Ramen stand and that people would have to climb over the mountain to get there, but he needed Ino to be the chef or it wouldn't work.

She had tried to explain to him that Ino couldn't be the chef because she hated cooking, but Naruto was adamant that it had to be her because the second Hokage, who looked remarkably like Sakura had decreed it. They were just about to start building the stand when the sky turned black and Naruto and the stand disappeared. The field she was in withered and burned to ash and standing there staring at her was the figure she now knew to be Madara.

The black flames of the **Amaterasu** come rushing towards her.

 _"Look San, she's dying, does this mean we can stop pretending to care about her?"_

She flinched when the flames reached her and began to swirl around her and consume her.

 _You're poison Quinn, you destroy everything you touch."_

She could feel herself heating up, it was starting to burn, and as she tries to hold back a scream she hears her mother's voice echo around her _. "I'll be right here waiting for you, ready and willing to tell you how truly special you are."_

And when Quinn had turned to look for the source of the voice there she had been. Her mother was watching her, a loving smile on her face and it was as if the fire had somehow felt pain, it flinched back and away from her, unable to touch her for that moment. She had woken up with a start after that, and had quickly kicked her blankets off as she felt like it was a million degrees in her room and she was drenched in sweat. It was close, but she hadn't woken up screaming, in fact when she looked over at Ino her sister was still fast asleep.

It wasn't perfect, but it was a start. She needed to work on accepting the love and friendship that she had in this world. She needed to learn that despite her situation that she did deserve love and happiness. She doubted she would ever be able to fully remove the **Amaterasu** from her dreams, because a small part of her would never be able to quell the negativity that was inside of her, never quite accept that she deserved these things, but if she could find that balance. Find a way to accept and believe that she was loved in spite of everything then maybe she could keep the flames at bay.

"Rin, are you okay?" Naruto asks as he waves his hand in front of her face.

"What, oh yeah I'm fine." Quinn answers with a smile.

"Good, you kind of spaced out there." He laughs, "What were you thinking about?"

"I was thinking that…" She gazes into Naruto's curious bright blue eyes, "I was thinking we should all go out for Ramen tonight, what do you guys say?"

That draws a bit of a gasp from everyone, including Naruto who loved Ramen to the point of obsession. He had even crafted a whole pantheon of Ramen related deities that he prayed to. All headed by Ramendeus, the god of the noodle. It was silly but it made her laugh, though he took it quite serious.

"What? Is that a no?" Quinn asks with a smile. She knew why they were shocked, it was her turn to pick what they did today and for the first time since they started this she was choosing to do something that had absolutely nothing to do with training.

Ino reaches over and feels her forehead. "Well she's not running a fever." She says playfully.

Quinn swats her hand away with a huff. "What, I just want some Ramen, that's all. I don't see what the big deal is?"

"Ramen sounds fine, it's just weird to hear that suggestion from someone other than Naruto." Ino quips.

Naruto is now staring at her looking quite pleased with himself. "That's because I've finally converted her to Ramenism."

"I think he's finally lost it." Sakura scoffs. However Naruto pays her no mind, instead focusing on Rin.

"So what was it that finally drew you in? Was it the divine might of the head god Ramendeus, or maybe it was the absolute beauty of the goddess of the broth, Misodite? Or perhaps you are a bit of a masochist and now follow the ways of the Dark One. The hateful god of the time it takes to cook Ramen?"

"The Dark One?" Rin laughs.

"That's right, we do not speak his name for he is ever watchful and easily offended. He is known to increase the time it takes for Ramen to cook as well as burn a bowl if he's feeling particularly wrathful." Naruto says quite seriously.

"Okay…" Ino says eyeing Naruto nervously. "I think someone has been out in the sun just a little too long."

"Pay them no mind Rin, for they are heathens and we are the blessed. Welcome to Ramenism, as its founder and prophet I am authorized to grant you the title and position of High Priestess of the Broth."

Quinn takes a moment to consider it, deciding to play along. "What exactly would my responsibilities be?"

Ino and Sakura groan as Naruto's eyes light up and Quinn laughs.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Bye everybody, I'm heading out!" Megumi hears Rin shout. It was Sunday afternoon and she was heading off for her first lesson with the Third Hokage.

"Hold on a just second." Megumi calls out, hurrying to the door to see her daughter off, smiling at her when she reaches her.

"Is everything okay mom?" Rin asks, tilting her head, worried. Megumi internally sighs, sometimes that gift of hers could be real pain. Rin could probably sense her anxiety.

"Yeah, everything is fine I just…" Megumi pauses, she doesn't know why she's so hesitant to let her daughter go. Getting trained by the Sandaime was a once in a lifetime opportunity. The Third Hokage hadn't taken on a student since he had trained the Sannin, who knew what kind of things Rin might be able to learn from him. It wasn't a full on apprenticeship or anything but the fact that the Third was willing to take the time out of his schedule to work with her only confirmed what Megumi had always known, that her daughter was special. It was stupid and she couldn't explain it but, she felt uneasy. Like maybe it was a mistake to let her go.

No, this was too big of an opportunity for Rin to pass up just because she felt nervous. Inoichi had been surprised but thrilled by this, recognizing what an opportunity it was for Rin, so she forces herself to calm down and think of all the good that could come of this. She smiles encouragingly down at her youngest. "I just wanted to wish you luck today. Work hard alright and I'll want to hear about everything when you get back, okay?"

"Sure thing." Rin says before stepping in to hug her. After her talk with the Third a couple of days ago Rin had been a lot more openly affectionate than she used to be. Not that Rin was a cold child, quite the opposite, but she was always fairly reserved. That was starting to change, not that Megumi minded.

"I love you, good luck, and work hard." Megumi says before kissing her daughters forehead.

"I love you too, and don't worry I will. I'll make you proud of me."

"I already am."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn sits patiently in the reception room of the Hokage's office waiting for him to finish up a meeting of some kind. When she had arrived his secretary had smiled pleasantly up at her from her magazine and told her that he would probably be a running a little late and that she had been told to apologize on his behalf and ask if she would be willing to wait for him. If not though he completely understood and that they would just try again next week.

Quinn could sense the annoyance coming from the woman as she said this, though it wasn't directed at her. No, if anything it seemed to be reserved for the three other chakra signatures that were in the Third's office with him. Actually the receptionist only seemed to find her a bit curious, there was a hint of jealousy in there as well, but mostly the woman seemed intrigued by her. Which Quinn might have found a bit strange if she wasn't fully aware of the fact that the seemingly harmless woman behind the desk was a fully trained ninja. She looked a bit like a 1950's secretary as she absentmindedly flipped through a magazine. Quinn knew it was all an act because judging by her chakra reserves she was easily a jōnin level ninja. She was probably wondering why the Third was taking the time to meet with some kid who hadn't even graduated from the academy yet.

As she let her senses go and expand, she found that the Third seemed quite annoyed too at the presence of his visitors. Two of the people that she could sense were slightly irked and exasperated, all of which was directed towards the Sandaime. The third signature was furious, seething and raging away. It might not be fair but Quinn instantly labeled him as quite an unpleasant person, plus there was something that was just… off about his chakra. Actually all three people in the room with the Third were quite powerful.

Quinn suppresses her powers again, it wasn't any of her business who was in there with him. Yeah it was a little annoying that she had to wait considering that technically this was her time, but she readily recognized that she was hardly a priority here and that the fact that the Third was making time for her at all was impressive.

It would be another fifteen minutes before the door to the Thirds office opened, with the Sandaime all but shuffling his visitors out. One of them was an old man and the other an old woman, both looked to be around the same age as the Sandaime, the other person wore a black kimono and was covered in bandages and walked with a cane.

"Yes, yes," the Hokage huffs, "I'll certainly take what you have all said into consideration."

"Saurtobi, this is serious." The old woman scowls, "There are implications involved that-"

Sandaime raises a hand to cut her off, "I'm well aware of that, you have all made your points quite clear and your concern is appreciated. Now if you will excuse me, I believe that young Miss Yamanaka has waited long enough."

All four sets of eyes turn to her and Quinn is suddenly feeling very self-conscious. The old man looks to be examining her curiously, not quite sure what to make of her. The old woman is doing the same but Quinn can detect a hint of sympathy coming from her as well. The mummy, as she had dubbed him in her mind was glaring at her. She didn't' need her abilities to know that for some reason he didn't like her, so she scowls back at him before standing and bowing to the Hokage.

"I can wait if you aren't finished Lord Hokage, there is no need to rush on my account."

"No, but there is a need to rush on mine, believe me." He says with a sigh. "Rin Yamanaka I would like you to meet Koharu Utatane," He motions to the old woman, "Homura Mitokado" He motions to the old man, "and Danzo Shimura." Finally motioning to the mummy. "They act as my… advisors on certain matters."

Danzo, the mummy, just scowls and proceeds to leave, however the other two turn to greet her.

"Good afternoon," The old man, Homura Mitokado says politely. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

Quinn bows to him, "Good afternoon to you as well, the pleasure is mine."

Homura turns to the Sandaime. "I hope you know what you are doing." He then turns back to Quinn. "Good luck today." And with that he takes his leave.

"Thank you sir."

"I trust you recognize what a privilege it is to receive training from the Hokage? There are many others who would love to be in your position." The woman, Koharu Utatane says.

Quinn barely manages to keep the scowl off of her face. No, of course she didn't realize that. It was only the Third Hokage, arguably the strongest ninja to ever come from this village. A man recognized the world over as the God of all Shinobi because of his prowess in battle… of course she fucking recognized what a privilege this was, she wasn't stupid. However she bites her tongue and replies politely. "Of course Lady Utatane, I'm very grateful to Lord Hokage. I am going to make the very most of this opportunity that I can."

The old woman gives her a very slight, but genuine smile which helps to ease Quinn's agitation just a bit. "Good, people will be watching you now, keeping an eye on the person that the Sandaime has decided to take a personal interest in. These people will be watching you and judging you, that can be a lot of pressure to handle. Ignore them, I've known Hiruzen for a long time now and nothing he does is ever done lightly. He must see a lot of potential in you."

Quinn isn't quite sure what to say to that so she just bows, "Yes ma'am."

Once she is gone the Third comes over to her, "Don't mind them, they generally mean well."

"I don't want to cause you any trouble Lord Hokage, if this is going to be a problem-"

"No, not at all. They're making this into a bigger deal than it actually is. Homura thinks that if I'm going to train someone that I should pick somebody that is a little bit more… shall we say, politically advantageous. And Koharu is actually worried that this might be a little too much pressure to place on someone so young. It's not, is it?" He asks her kindly.

Quinn shakes her head. "No, I mean I understand why people might think that but I haven't really thought of it like that."

"No?"

"No, I'm here for one reason, to grow stronger. I want to be as strong as I possibly can be because I have people who are important to me, they're why I'm here. Nothing else matters."

"I'm glad to hear you say that. In any battle the desire to win must be there in both combatants. In a fight between two evenly matched foes the one with the stronger will to win will be victorious and even if you are out matched a reason powerful enough to fight can push you past your limits. And in my opinion, there is no better nor stronger reason to fight than to protect those that you love. But enough talk, I'm sure you are as eager as I am to get started." The Sandaime says with a laugh as he claps her on the shoulder, "If you'll follow me, we'll head to an area a little more suited for what I have planned for you."

Quinn nods resolutely, ready to give this her all. "I'm ready whenever you are."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

She hadn't been sure what to expect when the Third had asked her if she would be interested in training with him once a week, but she wasn't disappointed. It wasn't as exciting as a lot of people were probably imagining it would be. He wasn't going over advanced tactics, there was no grand sparring match where he went all out against her to show her how far she needed to go, he wasn't teaching her forbidden world shattering jutsu, in fact he wasn't actually teaching her anything new. He asked her what she had last worked on and when she had answered **Substitution Jutsu** they worked on that. What made it interesting was the detail that he went into in talking about the jutsu. He seemed to know everything there was to know about it and he shared the knowledge freely.

The goal of his training with her wasn't to teach her new stuff, he explained, it was to help her discover and perfect her own style. She was working on **Substitution Jutsu** so that is what they would work on until they were both pleased with her progress, then they would move on to whatever it was she was working on next. He would teach her nothing new, what he would do was help her master and perfect what she was learning on her own.

She knew that some people might be disappointed in that. The man was a master of over 1000 jutsu after all, and to not teach her any of them might seem like a waste but in all actuality Quinn was thrilled with this. In one afternoon of work she had managed to reduce the mass of the object she needed to switch with by almost seven pounds and she had removed the first hand seal from the sequence as well. She couldn't teach advanced techniques to Ino, Naruto, and Sakura, but this, this she could do.

As she left he had told her that the ninja world held many secrets, how to become strong wasn't one of them. The answer was simple, it was hard work and that was it. Natural talent helped but it would only take you so far and that she would only get as much out of this as she put into it. He couldn't press some magical button and make her a world class ninja, that was all on her. But he also told her that he was very pleased with her efforts today and that he knew he had made the right choice in asking her to train with him and that he was excited for next week.

If that wasn't a confidence booster then Quinn didn't know what was. There was a bit of a skip to her step as she headed home. The session had run a little long and had started late so it was after seven when she finally arrived home.

"I'm home!" She calls out as she is removing her sandals in the entry way.

"Rin, you're home!" Ino shouts excitedly, running up to her. "How did it go, did you learn a lot? What is he teaching you? I bet it's something really cool isn't it!? Come on tell me! You promised you would share!"

"Slow down Ino, give your sister a chance to breathe." Her father says with a laugh as he comes up beside them. "Welcome home sweetheart."

"Thanks, and I'll tell you all about it sis, but I'm pretty sure you're going to be disappointed, it's not nearly as exciting as your thinking… no… actually that's not quite right, I can't wait for our next session and I am excited, I guess it would be better to say that it's not nearly as flashy as people might think. We worked on the **Substitution Jutsu**."

Ino's face falls, "That's it? You're training with the strongest ninja in the village and that's all he's teaching you!? We're learning how to do that at the academy… are you sure that's all you were doing?" Ino asks her suspiciously. "I mean if he's sworn you to some kind of super-secret, pain of death if you tell anyone training, just nod your head and I'll accept your answer."

Quinn laughs and gives Ino a hug. "Sorry, nothing like that but in one afternoon I've managed to remove the first seal in the sequence for **Substitution Jutsu** , so there is that." She says with a grin. "Where's mom? I wanted to tell her about this too."

"She saw you coming and she's warming you up some dinner." Her father says, "Now come along, we're all excited to hear about your big day." He says as he leads his girls into the kitchen.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Ino lay wide awake in her bed. Her mind in a whirlwind. She couldn't stop thinking about her sister and all of the progress she was making, or Sakura and how she was becoming stronger and more and more confident. She thinks about how even Naruto is improving by leaps and bounds. Then there was her. She couldn't help it, she felt like she was stagnating.

She was proud of her sister and her friends but she was jealous too. She wanted to keep up with them but at the rate they were growing and progressing she was going to fall behind. Everyone said that she was making great progress, her teachers, her parents, Rin and her friends, telling her that she was so far ahead of where she should be but she just didn't feel like it.

She looks over at Rin whose chest is rising and falling gently. What made her sister so much stronger than her? Yeah, Rin had trained more seriously than her to begin with but that had changed. She was always training with her sister now, working out with her, sparring, studying. And yet she always felt like she was playing catchup. She loved her sister, she truly did, but it was hard at times to even stand next to her and not feel inadequate.

Ino sighs as she looks at the clock, it was three in the morning. What was she doing awake at three in the morning? She had school tomorrow. It didn't matter, there was no way she was going to be able to go back to sleep. She sits up and quietly slides out of bed and glances over at Rin who tonight seemed to be sleeping peacefully. She was getting better but she knew that Rin was still suffering from her nightmares, but whatever techniques the third had taught her to help overcome them seemed to be working, because there was none of the usual whimpering or groaning that usually happened when Rin slept.

Ino walks over to her sister and tucks her in a little better, some of her blankets having slipped off a bit during the night. She smiles lightly as Rin snuggles into the blankets a bit and sighs comfortably. It was nice to see her sister finally get a decent night's sleep. Seeing Rin as shaken as she had been after that first nightmare had been scary, especially because it was such a different Rin from the strong confident girl that she usually was. In Ino's mind Rin was born to be a ninja, everything came so easily to her sister.

And as Ino left their room she can't help but consider the possibility that maybe she had made a mistake in training to become a ninja. From the time she was a little girl that was all she could remember wanting to be. A ninja like her father was and her mother had been. She wanted to be strong and powerful and be able to help people and to have people look up to her. It just felt like what she was supposed to do.

But Rin hadn't been sure, she remembered very well that it wasn't until a week before the academy started that Rin finally decided to join up. She had never expressed any interest in being a ninja before that, in fact she spent half her time talking about being something else. She would get so excited about these different things too and talk about them so passionately. A writer, an actress, a chef. All of these jobs and more had been things Rin talked about doing when they grew up. But for Ino there had always been just the one course, ninja.

She had been so happy and so pleased when Rin had decided to become a ninja with her. They would be together just like they always should be, but now she had to wonder… It was clear that Rin's path was that of a ninja, but what about her? She had just jumped head first into this world and hadn't given it a second thought. Rin had agonized over this decision and even when she had decided she seemed uncertain and then they had their first class ever and it was like something clicked in the other girl. But not her, yeah things often came pretty easy for her, and you didn't get to be ranked fourth in class without having at least a bit of natural talent and hard work but still…

She knew that part of her problem was that she did compare herself to her sister. They were identical twins, it was hard not to. They looked exactly the same, even more so now that she had started to grow her hair out like Rin. But once you looked past the physical similarities she and her sister were quite different. Rin was always so calm and collected. Completely focused on what she was doing. She was also quiet and she seemed so much older and mature than everyone else.

Ino knew she could be childish at times and she knew that she could be a little loud. And yeah, sometimes she got distracted, but she worked hard too. And she was friendly and outgoing and passionate about things. She wanted good things for her friends and family and she liked to help people. Those were good qualities too, weren't they?

Not that those things made much of a difference in training but she couldn't help but wonder if maybe they did. They were supposed to be identical twins, so why was Rin so much more advanced than her? And she knew that her jealousy wasn't fair to her sister either. Rin always went out of her way to work with her and help her, she never acted like she was better or that Ino was lesser. And Rin was always happy to show others what she knew, she had spent all evening going over in as much detail with her as she could, everything that the Third had taught her. It was just… for once she would like to be the one to teach Rin something. She would like to feel like her sister's equal.

Ino turns the lights on in the kitchen and begins to make herself some tea. Maybe that would calm her mind a bit, or maybe she would go train. Try to play catch up with her sister, yeah right, catch up to her sister, the very girl who was getting private lessons from the Third Hokage, probably not going to happen.

"Hey princess, what are you doing up?" Her father tries to ask quietly but Ino was so lost in thought that she hadn't noticed him and so he startled her.

"Daddy!" She gasps, clutching at her chest. "I didn't see you there."

He smiles at her apologetically, "Sorry to startle you. So, what are you doing?"

Ino shrugs, "I couldn't sleep so I'm making some tea, do you want some?"

"Sure," He says softly as he takes a seat, "I would love some."

They both remain silent as Ino warms the water and then adds the ingredients, a companionable silence falling over them. Ino knows her father won't say anything until she's ready to speak. He was a good listener like that. It isn't until they both have a warm cup in their hands and are both sitting down that Ino breaks the silence.

"Daddy…?"

"Yes?"

"Do… do you think I'm a good ninja… I mean do you think I'm as good as Rin?"

Her father is silent for a moment and Ino can feel her heart start to sink.

"I think, that the two of you are very different types of ninja, who excel in very different areas. Your sister is very combat oriented, she's good at other things but that's where her talents and passions lie. But there is more to being a ninja than just being a good fighter. Studying your enemy, knowing how people think, stealth and deception. Reading what's beneath the underneath. Those are things that you know how to do and come to you so naturally. It's hard, I know, to see how that matters especially while you are in the academy and can't really see the fruits of your labor, especially not when you compare it to the progress you can see when you look at peoples fighting skills but yes, I would say without a doubt you are every bit the ninja that Rin is."

"Really?" Ino asks uncertainly, she wants to believe him, she really does but she can't help but wonder.

"Really, you can't compare yourself to her like that, you excel in very different areas. And let's be clear, you're no slouch in the combat arts either, but where you truly shine is in deception and stealth. Intelligence and counter intelligence, and those are important things too. I'm no combat ninja either, you're progressing much like I did when I was your age, only much faster. Believe in yourself, you are so far ahead of where you should be, you have every reason to be proud of yourself."

Ino nods her head. "Thanks… it's just… I always feel like I'm watching her back, you know. Like I'm always trying to catch up to her and when I finally think I've done it she does something else and I just… I don't want to be left behind."

"Oh honey, don't think that. Your path is different than your sisters but that doesn't mean you've fallen behind her."

"Maybe… I don't know, maybe I just need something more, something new to challenge myself with, you know? I can't just keep learning from Rin or the academy, I have to do what she does and forge my own path… I… I need something that is specifically for me." Ino looks over at her father as an idea comes to her mind, a resolute look on her face. "Daddy, could you start training me in our clan techniques.

"Are you sure." He asks her seriously. It was a little bit earlier than it would usually happen, but Ino and Rin had both come so far that he had told them that anytime they were ready to he would start training them in their clan techniques. But before he did, they had to consider it very carefully. The Yamanaka clan techniques were some of the most difficult techniques to learn for a multitude of reason, not the least of which was the chance that you might drive yourself insane.

"I'm sure. You said that if we were ready we could ask you to train us, I'm ready."

"I'm not trying to discourage you but I want you to think carefully on this, because once you commit there is no going back. If you want to grow stronger there are other ways to do so, safer ways. Many have gone insane, have broken their minds trying to learn our techniques. You have to be able to look inside yourself, truly look at yourself and not only see yourself for what you are but accept it as well. That's not always easy and we don't always like what we see. Many Yamanaka's don't ever get beyond even the first stage."

"I'm not afraid. Please, will you teach me?" Ino asks.

"Very well. If you're serious then we'll begin your training tomorrow, but I warn you, it won't be easy. You have to break yourself down and rebuild yourself all over again. You have to see every strength that you have as well as every weakness, you will have to know and accept yourself completely. If you don't, if you can't, then your own mind will turn against you and will tear you apart from the inside."

"I can do this." Ino says firmly, "I know I can."

"Okay. We'll start tomorrow as soon as I get home, in the meantime, I think it's time to head back to bed. You'll want to be well rested."

Ino nods her head. "Okay daddy. I'll just clean up here and go to bed."

"Don't worry about it, I'll take care of it. Goodnight princess."

"Goodnight daddy."


	11. Chapter 10

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Glee. So another time skip in this chapter, it takes place approximately six to four months before they graduate. This chapter is split into four parts each one done from the perspective of Quinn, Ino, Sakura, and finally Naruto. It goes a bit into the training they've been doing since last chapter as well as their motivations, but it doesn't cover everything that has happened. Think of this as a bit of a snapshot chapter. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 10-xXx**

 **s**

She could feel the fire burning and coursing through her. The inferno that was building up inside of her was incredible, the raw power that she could wield if she could just harness it would be unimaginable. But that was the problem, of all the elements fire was the hardest to control. Sarutobi-sensei had told her that what she was attempting to do was all but impossible. She didn't care, now that she had started this she knew it was the right course.

Quinn had hit a bit of a wall in her training and so she needed to do something that would help her break through and keep progressing. She had spent weeks and weeks going over the theoretical aspects of this with the Third. Scrolls filled to the brim with instruction and diagrams, notes detailing every little thing that she would have to get right in order for this to work and she had memorized them all.

She steadies her breathing as she stands on top of the river, the water boiling and steaming around her as she concentrates. She was stripped down to a pair of net shorts and her wrappings, any more clothing was currently too difficult for her to keep from bursting into flames. She knows that Sarutobi-sensei is standing nearby, watching her, completely focused and ready to intervene if necessary. If she wasn't careful, the amount of fire-natured chakra that she was channeling could get away from her and consume her. Thus the whole practicing while standing on a river with someone standing by to suppress and seal her chakra away if it got out of hand… thing.

She would probably have made more progress if she could practice this more often but the Third was adamant, and she had to grudgingly agree, that what she was attempting was so far advanced and so dangerous that he was the only one who could help her… or you know stop her from blowing a good couple of acres of Konoha into oblivion. So the only time she got to truly practice was when she met with him on Sunday afternoons.

She was sweating profusely as she continued to focus and mold her chakra within her, converting more and more of it into pure fire-nature chakra. She could feel herself brimming with energy, but it was getting harder and harder to control. Earth could be molded, Lightning could be guided, Water could be shaped, Wind could be directed, but Fire… Fire was a completely different beast. One that couldn't be fully tamed and that was what she was trying to do.

Quinn flinches in pain as she can feel her skin start to burn and ache with the pressure, she had finally reached her threshold point, the point where exactly half of her chakra has been converted into fire chakra. From here it got tricky, because once she tipped the balance in favor of fire she began to lose control of it and her own chakra then wanted to burn her alive. No… if she could just keep focused, reign it in and remember the meditations, remember how it felt last time where it had gone wrong and just avoid that.

She was close, she could feel it, she was getting there… and then it was gone. She felt the fiery chakra begins to rage against her, furious and free and determined to break loose of the tentative control that she had. Suddenly there was a pain in her stomach as she felt the Third Hokage slam a seal onto her and her access to her chakra was cut off and down she went into the water. Damn it, she was so close to, she could feel it. She takes a moment to allow herself to cool down underneath the surface of the water before she swims to the top.

When she breaks the surface she can see Sarutobi-sensei standing above her a look of concern on his face. "Are you okay?" He asks as he lifts her out of the water and removes the seal he had placed on her.

"Yeah… I was so close that time, damn it..." She says, feeling exhausted as the Third helps to steady her.

"Are you sure that you wish to continue on with this, there are easier ways, safer ways to achieve what you are trying to do."

Quinn shakes her head. "No, they're similar but they won't do what I'm trying to achieve." She had come up with this idea one night while watching a movie with her friends. It was a ninja hero movie that had reminded her of something that she had seen back in her old world while she was dating Sam. She was basically trying to become that flaming torch guy from the fabulous or fanatic four movie that they had watched together.

The basic premise was she was trying to convert her entire chakra supply into fire chakra. So she spent a good month researching chakra natures and specifically the fire nature and then she presented her notes to Sarutobi-sensei. He had then gone over them carefully and he agreed that if you were in fact able to do this there were quite a few benefits that you could get from it.

One being that you could potentially perform any fire jutsu without the use of hand seals and you could perform higher level jutsu with less chakra drain because the chakra was already converted. Also the energy that the fire chakra would be sending through you would also be akin to the output of opening at least three of the chakra gates thus increasing your strength and speed by at least that much, without the nasty side effect of you know… death by chakra exhaustion. It would also make you near impossible to fight in hand to hand combat, the heat that would be radiating from your body would scorch anyone who got too close and any strike from you would be like getting hit with a white hot iron. All of this was possible if she could successfully convert her chakra reserves completely into its fire nature form.

However, doing so definitely had risks, not the least of which was that if she lost control of the technique for even a moment she basically turned into a giant bomb that would take out, well… there was a reason they were out here in the boonies. But assuming she didn't blow up there were other side effects to consider as well. The fire was hurting her, chakra coils weren't meant to house and direct natured chakra, at least not in the quantities that she was attempting to do it at and so she was running the risk of literally frying her chakra system. It had taken weeks and weeks of meditation and preparation to get her system and body ready to handle this kind of energy and even then she had to go slowly, just a little bit at a time.

Her first full attempt to do this had resulted in her spending three days in the hospital with second degree burns all over her body. Lucky for her Konoha had the best medical corp. in all of the elemental nation so she was perfectly fine now, but at the time it hadn't been fun. She had never seen her parents or sister as angry or as scared as they were when they came rushing into her hospital room, having been informed of her condition.

She was getting closer though, she could feel it. She could reach her threshold point now with no problem. The threshold point being that exact moment when half of her chakra was unrefined Yin and Yang energy, your standard chakra, and the other half had been completely converted. She could even fight at that stage, even if it was only for a few minutes, and it made her fire jutsu stronger and easier to use too, but that wasn't the end goal. She didn't want just a partial conversion, she wanted complete and total conversion. But once she pushed past that threshold point she just couldn't maintain control of the technique.

Saurtobi-sensei huffs in frustration. "I'll admit that you've given me pause to think that this is actually possible, a total chakra conversion, but I don't think that you're quite ready yet. You have plenty of time Rin, there is no need to rush." He finishes kindly.

Quinn shakes her head. "That's where you're wrong. I only have four months until graduation, and we meet only once a week which is the only time I'm allowed to practice this, so that gives me essentially sixteen days to complete this technique. Once I'm a full-fledged genin I won't have as much time to train and practice because I'll have duties that I'll need to perform that will take up more of my time. No, I have to complete do this now."

Sarutobi-sensei smiles at her. "You do realize that active duty ninja train as well right? It's not all just mission after mission, especially not in times of peace like this. You'll have plenty of time to learn how to do this."

"Maybe, but a lot of that time is going to be spent doing team training and it's like you said you're the only one that can really help me accomplish this… besides I'm not ready to quit just yet. Let's give it one more try."

"No, I think that's enough for today, your body needs to recover."

Quinn sighs, she could hear the finality in his voice and knew that it would do her no good to argue. "Yes sensei…"

Sarutobi-sensei laughs, "Oh-ho, you are coming along so well that I sometimes forget that you are still only twelve years old. Trust an old man on this, you have plenty of time so no pouting."

"What!? I wasn't pouting!"

But Sarutobi-sensei pays her no mind, and just continues to chuckle as he leads the two of them out of the training grounds and back towards the village.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Ino sat as still as a statue in the middle of the darkened and silent room, a single candle off in the corner acting as their only light. Her eyes are closed as she falls deeper and deeper into her meditative state. Anything that could prove a distraction to her had been removed. She needed total focus as she continued removing all excess thoughts from her mind, focusing on herself and who she was. Strengthening her sense of identity as her father sits across from her watching her carefully. No one was to disturb them, once the door to this room was shut, they didn't exist.

Ino Yamanaka, she repeats her name over and over again in her mind.

Ino Yamanaka.

Ino Yamanaka.

I.

Am.

Ino.

Yamanaka.

Her eyes snap open as she stares at her father, her own eyes locking onto his. Her hands shoot up in the necessary seal that would help guide her spirit to its target. " **Mind Transfer Jutsu**!" She calls out.

Her father brings his own hands up in a seal that matches hers. " **Mind Receiver Jutsu**." He says simultaneously, this technique was used to help open the user's mind up to people they were teaching and make them slightly easier to possess with the **Mind Transfer Jutsu** to.

For a moment the world stretches around her like she's being sucked through a long tube and then suddenly her perspective shifts and Ino watches as her physical body slumps over. This was one of the things that made their clan techniques so dangerous to use. You sent your consciousness over into another person and your body lay helpless, and once you were inside your targets mind there were other dangers. Like, if you didn't have a complete and perfect sense of who you were then your own mind would be ripped to shreds by the other person's and your consciousness would be absorbed and lost inside of them. The person you were disappeared and all that was left of you was your body, an empty husk. There were more, extremely advanced techniques that allowed a skilled practitioner of their arts to slowly piece a person's mind back together, but doing so was difficult and could take months or even years.

It was a year and a half's worth of preparation that had finally lead up to this moment. With the **Mind Transfer Jutsu** you were either successful on your first attempt or you were a vegetable. Months and months of meditation, of journal keeping, studying the human mind, of letting her father into her mind and helping her organize it, of looking inside herself and facing her inner demons had led to this moment. Right here, right now, where she would finally be able to attempt the first technique of the Yamanaka clan. The **Mind Transfer Jutsu**. It was the basis for every other technique that her clan had created and once you learned and mastered it, the others came easy.

 _"Now Ino, I want you to focus._ " Ino can hear her father's voice echo around her. _"Concentrate and focus, you have successfully entered my mind but you're nowhere near through yet. Have you established your anchor?"_

"Yes," She answers with her father's mouth and voice. "It's pictured clearly in my mind and I can feel it linked to my body. I can feel it calling to me, pulling me towards it so that it can take me back to my body." You never told anyone what your anchor was, otherwise they could reverse the jutsu and follow you back to your mind.

 _"Good, no matter what you are doing never lose sight of that anchor, if you do you will be trapped inside your targets mind and you might never be able to escape. If you ever feel your connection to your anchor slipping cut the technique off immediately."_

"I understand."

 _"Good, now take a moment to center yourself and imagine yourself with your own body. Picture it, every detail there is about you, imagine a perfect image of your body and then I want you to step inside of it."_

"Okay." She answers as she does just that. She slowly constructs her body inside of her father's mind down to the very last detail, from the slight sheen of her hair due to that new shampoo she was using to the fact that she had let Rin paint her toenails pink the other night. Nothing was forgotten or over looked and when she was finished, she found herself standing inside of a black circle that was acting as a barrier to the raging hurricane of her father's mind which swirled around her. "Done." She calls out

 _"Good, now that you have established your avatar you have complete control, any movement you make, my body will make as well. That circle you are standing on is your barrier, never move beyond it. As long as you are completely inside the barrier you are in control, if the barrier breaks or is breached then the other person is back in control. Go ahead and move around a bit, get used to the feeling of control."_

Ino does as asked and stands up inside of her father's body, she raises and lowers his arms and legs, getting a feel for how to make someone move. She even walks around the room. It was a little clumsy but that would go away with time and practice.

Suddenly her father's avatar is standing next to her inside the barrier. _"Very good Ino, I'm impressed. Now, take a deep breath and close your eyes. When you do, you'll feel a slight tap to your forehead. Then you'll feel a tug at your naval pulling you towards your anchor, go with it, and when you open your eyes you'll be back inside your own body."_

Ino does as she's told and for a second she feels like she being stretched like a rubber band and when she opens her eyes she's lying on the floor and looking up at the beaming face of her father. "Ino, congratulations you have just successfully completed your first use of the **Mind Transfer Jutsu**. I am so very proud of you."

"Thanks daddy, that was… intense." She says with a slightly breathless tone as her world spins around her.

"Yeah, but you'll get used to it, now how are you feeling?"

"I'm okay I guess, I have a bit of a headache though." She says as she tries to sit up.

"No, don't sit up, you're mind and your body are getting re-oriented. Give it a minute, and as for the headache, that was because I ended the technique instead of you. As you learn to cut the technique off on your own and as you learn to utilize it to its fullest potential you won't get that anymore and the time it takes for your mind and body to reconnect will be shorter."

"Can we do it again?" She asks.

"No, you need to recover and refocus yourself. Meditate before you go to bed tonight and right when you wake up tomorrow. We'll pick it up again after I get back from work tomorrow."

"Yeah, okay." Ino says, it was probably a good idea to wait anyways, she was feeling a little off right now.

"Ino, I want you to know how incredibly proud of you I am, you've picked up on this so fast."

Ino rolls her eyes, "Daddy, it's taken me a year and a half to get here."

"I know, it took me two. The amount of preparation needed for this techniques is incredible, but you'll find that now that you've reached this part, you're progress is going to sky rocket."

"Really?"

"Yes, I knew that these techniques would suit you. You're coming along so fast and I couldn't be more proud of you even if they named you the Godaime tomorrow."

Ino giggles at that and starts to sit up, her head is still spinning and her body sways unevenly so her father helps her. "I don't think Naruto would forgive me if they did that. I'm glad though, it's been tough but… I think this is exactly what I needed. Thanks for training me."

"The pleasure has been all mine princess. Now, let's go see what your mother has cooking for us, I'm starving." He says helping her to stand up, steadying her as she wobbles a bit.

"Wow… that took a lot more out of me than I thought."

"Transferring minds is rough on the body, but you'll grow more and more accustomed to it and then eventually you won't even notice it anymore, but the first couple of transfers can be a little rough. Actually I'm surprised you haven't… there you go." Her father says sympathetically as he rubs her back. She's bent over and throwing up, the act of standing and trying to walk having caused a vicious attack of nausea.

"This… *gack*… this is awful." She moans.

"Now you see why I wanted you to wait before trying it again."

Ino just moans in response before retching again."

"Maybe just some broth for you tonight." Her father suggests.

"Maybe you're right…"

"And just think, you get to do this again tomorrow." He says with a laugh.

"Oh gods…"

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Sakura let out a grunt as she pushed the bar bell up again, feeling the strain of it. She was keeping a mental count and had upped her weights today by another five pounds. It didn't seem like much but considering what she was already lifting it added up quickly. Sweat was pouring off of her body, she probably smelled a bit, and she was going to be aching in the morning and yet, she couldn't be happier.

Ever since she had started training in Taijutsu it was as if something had clicked for her. She was finally becoming the Kunoichi she always dreamed she would be. She was fit and muscular without being beefy, this was due to a chakra control technique that Guy-sensei had showed her. It basically worked like this, you channeled the chakra to the muscles in the area you were working on but you didn't use it to strengthen yourself, instead you basically covered it in a thin layer of chakra. Doing this gave you all of the density and strength gain that the exercising gave you but it prevented you from bulking up, that way you could get as strong as you wanted but didn't have to lose the flexibility that a more lithe frame gave you.

Guy-sensei was certainly… eccentric is the word she believed the Hokage had used when he had described him, Sakura was more apt to use words like insane and fanatical, but the Hokage had also been correct, the man was genius when it came to Taijutsu and he had been more than happy to pass on his _"Hip and youthful"_ tips to her. And over the course of the last year and a half that she had gotten to know him she had come to have a great deal of respect for him.

She was actually a little disappointed that he had already taken on a genin team six months ago because she would have loved to have had him as her jōnin sensei, although she could understand why he couldn't. Her senpai Lee was on his team and while she believed in him and Guy-sensei believed in him, his chakra coil disorder meant that not a lot of ninja would give him a chance seeing that he would never be able to form ninjutsu or genjutsu. Lee was another interesting character that she had grown quite fond of as well, occasionally working out together and sparring together. Like herself, Lee saw beyond Guy-sensei's eccentricities and realized what a truly powerful shinobi he was.

Now she wasn't exactly rushing to wear green spandex and cut her hair into a bowl cut anytime soon like Lee had, but she appreciated and loved the enthusiasm that both of them brought to the table. It was nice to see people outside her immediate group of friends who were just as determined to improve themselves as they were. Her only issue with Lee was that he had a bit of a crush on her.

He was a sweet guy and she felt honored to count him as a friend but her heart firmly belonged to another. He swore that he would win her love but she wished that he wouldn't try, she didn't want to hurt him. She knew how she felt for this other person and it wasn't going to change. They were who she was training for, who she was getting stronger for. She had to get stronger if she wanted to reach a place where she could call herself their equal and then finally tell them how she felt.

Sakura finishes her set and places the bar on its rest before sitting up. She was currently in the basement of their house, her parents had been really supportive of her new found resolve and had converted the room into a gym for her. Her mother especially had been thrilled, both of her parents were Ninja's and while her father was happy to let her be his little girl for as long as she liked, her mother was grateful that she was taking her training more seriously and was especially glad that she was taking up Taijutsu as well which was her forte. Often helping her daughter out with her technique and forms whenever Guy-sensei was unavailable.

Sakura moves from her weight set and heads over to the training dummy that had been set up, where she once again goes into the now familiar kata's. Practicing her stances and posture, getting into a comfortable rhythm of strikes and counter strikes. Her body moving with perfect precision and control. Her muscles flexing powerfully under her skin. She was a beast, as Guy-sensei had affectionately called her.

A year and a half ago she would have been horrified by the comparison, but now it made her smile. Because she really was a bit of a beast. Her hair was long and messy, pulled back into a loose ponytail. She had calluses on her knuckles from learning and perfecting how to throw a punch. She had the strongest body in her class, training herself to the limit in search of physical perfection. She had also grown taller as well, shooting up by a couple of inches and actually making her the tallest person in class.

Her body was filling out now too, which pleased her to no end. She was gaining a figure and while she wasn't as stacked as say Hinata was, or even Ino and Rin, she certainly wasn't a little girl anymore either, another pleasant side effect of changing her eating habits to something much healthier than what it had been. With Guy-sensei's help as well as her mother's she had learned how to eat much healthier than what she used to in order to keep up with the demands of her body, and so the junk food she used to enjoy snacking on was all but gone. She missed it sometimes, just eating whatever it was she wanted, but she wouldn't trade what she had gained by giving them up for anything. She was a well-oiled machine and she was going to keep that way. Though being friends with Naruto with his ramen addiction certainly made it difficult at times.

She had worked hard to get where she was, to reach a point where when it came to Taijutsu at least, she was the best in her class. Her chakra reserves were still small in comparison to some of her other classmates, but they had grown quite a bit from when she had started and she still had her perfect control to make up for it. No, for the first time in her life, Sakura had confidence in herself and had a faith in her abilities that she had never had before. She was going to be the greatest Taijutsu master this village had ever seen.

"Sakura, it's time for dinner." She hears her father call out, and she has to suppress a wince. Her father meant well but not only couldn't he cook to save his life but the concept of a healthy balanced meal seemed lost on him.

"Ah… I think I'll just stick with a protein shake tonight." She calls out.

She can hear him come down the stairs. "Nonsense, I made Yakitori, you'll love it!" He says beaming.

Okay, she can concede that that wasn't too bad, it would be pretty difficult for him to screw that up. "Sure, sounds good." She says with a smile. "Let me just wash up okay?"

"No worries I'll keep your plate warm."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Naruto smiled as he walked behind his three friends, they were on their way to the academy for another day of training. Only four months left until graduation, four months and they would all be full-fledged ninja. It had been an interesting ride so far and he felt like he had learned and grown so much since that first day all those years ago when he went to see if Rin would play with him.

He hadn't caught up to them yet, but he was improving and growing. He wasn't the dead last that everyone always said he would be and more importantly than that, he had people who cared about him. Who saw him and didn't ignore him or look at him with disgust or hate in their eyes. He was Naruto Uzumaki and not only did they acknowledge him, they liked him, they believed in him and encouraged him.

They didn't make fun of his dreams or aspirations, they encouraged him to pursue them. Helping him along the way, teaching him and guiding him when he needed it and stepping back and letting him learn on his own when he needed that too. They were his precious people. Sure when he was goofing off they might call him on it, but then again there were times when they joined him as well. He wasn't there yet, he knew he had a long road ahead of him and a lot of work to do but he wanted to be strong like them and he wanted to be able to protect them as well. More than anything else he wanted to create a world where they could live in peace.

When he had first said he wanted to be Hokage he could see the skepticism in their eyes, it was a lofty goal and he wasn't exactly a model student of the shinobi arts at the time. He was much better now but back then when he had first said it to them he could admit that he was kind of a brat. He goofed off and never really studied, more interested in playing games or pranks. But that didn't matter, it was his dream and he was going to do it and he was going to get everyone in the village to recognize him.

Looking back he felt kind of bad for Rin in the early days of their friendship. They were polar opposites of each other and he knew that he could be a little trying at times. But she was patient with him and stood by him even when maybe it would have been easier for her not to. One thing he knew that had really irked her about him was his work ethic, or lack of. Because she was a hard worker and she valued that in other people as well. She had no problem spending hours or even days going over something with you until you got it down, but you had better be putting in one hundred percent. However, back then he… well he didn't want to admit it but he was lazy.

He wanted his abilities to just come to him and if something wasn't interesting to him then he couldn't be bothered to learn it. He thought it was a waste of his time. He wanted to do the cool flashy jutsus, the kind that you saw in the ninja movies, or heard about in legends and stories, he didn't care about the basics. Did the Hokage need to know how to make a camp fire or sharpen a kunai, no, or how to do the horse stance correctly, no way, he had kickass jutsu that could destroy a mountain at his disposal. Get him some of that, you know.

He could remember the day that all changed for him clearly, when he finally got his butt into gear and started taking his training seriously. They had been seven years old at the time and had only been hanging out together for a couple of months. It was a fairly short time together but he already considered her his best friend by that point.

 _"Naruto would you please settle down, I'm trying to read." Rin asks him politely for what felt like the billionth time that hour, looking up from her scroll and arching her brow at him. They were at her house right now studying for an upcoming exam. Well they were supposed to be studying, he was having trouble wanting to concentrate._

 _Naruto whines at her, "Oh, C'mon Rin this is soooooo boring, let's go do something else okay? Let's go play ninja!" He asks her hopefully._

 _Rin sighs, "Naruto we have a test on this tomorrow and you've already failed your last two. We can play tomorrow after the test."_

 _"No, because you'll want to review what was on it." He whines._

 _Rin rolls her eyes, "Yes, but that won't take all day."_

 _"But this is boring!"_

 _Rin looks at him and takes a breath deep calming breath. "I'll admit it's not the most exciting thing ever but it's important, plus if you fail this test Suzumi-sensei will drop you from her class."_

 _Naruto huffs petulantly, "So!? What do I care about some dumb flowers or some lame tea ceremony etiquette or any of that type of junk, who needs it?" He asks puffing his cheeks petulantly._

 _"It's to help us train for infiltration and assassination missions. And those dumb flowers that you don't care to learn about are used in a variety of codes all of the time as well as being used in various poisons, toxins, balms, and solutions. The flower arrangements that they teach us are a way to help us remember what plants work together to create a poison and which ones are used to make antidotes. And that etiquette that you seem to think is so lame is how you will pass yourself off as a servant or a noble to get closer to your target, whether it's a rescue mission or an assassination mission or just information gathering. This "junk" is important, so you need to learn it." She scolds him lightly._

 _Naruto scowls at that, she was the only person, besides Iruka-sensei, who ever seemed to scold him and if he wasn't so frustrated right now he would also note she was the only one who ever seemed to praise him as well. "Well so what?" He snaps at her, "When I'm Hokage I won't need to know any of this anyway, the Hokage doesn't have to go on some wimpy infiltration missions so there!"_

 _"And how the hell do you expect to make it to the level of Hokage if you can't even be bothered to learn something as basic as this!?" She snaps at him, and Naruto is startled by it, it was the first time she had ever yelled at him._

 _"You go on and on about wanting to be the Hokage, fine, great, good for you, you have a goal, congratulations! Just one question, how do you expect to get there by sitting on your ass and whining all of the time!?" She jumps up to her feet glaring at him._

 _"You don't study, you don't train seriously, and yet you want to make it to the highest possible position that a ninja can ever hold? The title of Hokage is only passed onto one person and that person is the strongest in the village, how, how do you expect to earn that title when you're at the very bottom of the class and you refuse to change!?"_

 _Naruto can feel the tears prickling at his eyes, but he holds them back jumping to his feet and he starts yelling too. "That won't matter, I'll become Hokage no matter what, I don't care what anyone says I'll do it! Everyone is holding me back, but I don't care, just watch me!"_

 _Rin scoffs and shakes her head, "Holding you back? Who exactly is holding you back, you get the exact same training as everyone else?"_

" _Well it's boring, I don't care about that stuff I want to learn how to do cool things, but they won't help me because they hate me!"_

" _They don't help you because you just don't pay attention and when you do ask for help it's always for something that you aren't ready for yet. You remember the chakra strings, you asked me to teach you how to do it but you weren't willing to do what I said."_

" _That's because all you had me doing was the leaf sticking exercise which is boring and useless. How was it supposed to help me learn?"_

" _It builds a foundation, if you want to learn the "cool" jutsu then you have to build a foundation to work off of, you can't just dive right in you have to start simple and work your way up. But you don't want to do that, you're lazy and it's obvious you don't actually have any interest in being a ninja and for the life of me I can't figure out why you even want to be Hokage in the first place? You aren't willing to work for it."_

" _I do too want to be a ninja, it means everything to me! Being a ninja means that everyone has to recognize you as someone important and the Hokage is the most important ninja there is, and one day that will be me! And then everyone will have to look at me and respect me!" Naruto screams at her, furious that his supposed best friend would question his dream._

" _Then you should find a new dream and quit being a ninja." Rin says softly, looking down._

 _Naruto felt like all of the air had just been sucked out of him, his best friend had just told him to quit. "What…?" He stutters. "How… how can you say that… you're supposed to be my friend?"_

 _When Rin looks at him he can see there are tears welling up in her eyes. "If all you want is attention there are better and safer ways to get it. You like ramen right, learn everything there is to know about ramen and become a world class celebrity ramen chef. Cook for celebrities and daimyos and lords, open up a chain of restaurants that cover all the Elemental Nations. Or you could open up a store that provides for its community, start a charity and feed and clothe the homeless. Become a pillar of the community. You're cute, become an actor and star in movies and plays. All of these things could get you all of the recognition that you could ever want and you wouldn't have to be in this stupid… horrible life."_

 _The tears were falling down Rin's face now and he felt bad that she was crying but he was confused as well. "What are you talking about Rin, being a ninja is the coolest thing ever?"_

 _Rin laughs, but it's a harsh humorless laugh. "No, it really isn't. Do you have any idea how horrifying it is that at seven years old we're training to be killers, that we're learning how to plan and detect assassinations, that we're being taught to handle weapons and poisons. That within only five short years from now we may be called upon to kill someone just because they ticked off the wrong person."_

" _What… no, ninja's are heroes… we, they stop the bad guys." Naruto stutters out confused, he had never seen anyone have this kind of negative take on being a ninja before._

" _No, we stop whoever is paying us tells us to stop. We're being trained to fight, to kill, and to die for this village… you're goddamn children! Do you have any idea how fucking messed up this is!?" Rin screams, her face red from the crying and anger. "If you want to be acknowledged, loved, there are so many different and better ways to go about it, ways that would keep you safe and keep you from ever having to kill, why this!? Why be a ninja!?"_

 _Rin falls to her knees and pounds the ground, not looking up at him, but he is able to see her tears hit the floor. "Why would anyone choose this life, why? You don't have to look very hard, ask anyone, how many people have they lost, have died doing this. How many children have been asked to kill and die for some bullshit cause that someone else says is important. I would never be a ninja, not in a million billion years, not if I had a choice."_

" _Then why are you training to be one so hard then, if you hate it so much then why?" Naruto asks, confused and upset, along with a bunch of other emotions swirling around inside of him that he wasn't quite mature enough to understand yet._

 _When Rin looks up at him it was with a look of hopelessness that hit him hard. It was a look that he knew all too well from the mirror. It was the look of someone who felt alone with no one to comfort them, who had nothing and wanted nothing more than to quit, but couldn't for some reason or another, because something inside wouldn't let them. "I'm doing this because I have people that I need to protect and this is the only way I know how to do it. First it was just Ino, but now there's you and Sakura as well. I have to protect you because you don't know any better, because you all think this life we're choosing is something glamorous and wonderful and it's not. It's full of death and destruction where good people and children and whole families are treated as nothing more than tools to kill and then discarded when they lose their usefulness."_

" _Don't believe me, look it up, see how many people have died in the service of this fucking village and see just how young some of them are. I hate it, I hate this world. My mother, my father, my sister, you, all of you think that it's so fantastic but it isn't. It's scary and its horrible and I wish it were different but I'm stuck here and the only thing that keeps me going is that there are people here who I love more than my own life and so I have to stay and I have to fight for them. I have to be strong enough to protect you all, I've lost everything once and I can't do it again, I won't, I'm not strong enough. I don't matter but all of you do and if I can ever get even one of you to change your mind, to pick a different path than this, then I'll count this life of mine a success. I dream of a world without ninjas."_

That phrase had stuck with him ever since. _"I dream of a world without ninjas."_ It was so strange to him, all his life he had heard about how awesome ninjas were and how they were heroes, and they were, but there was more to it than that. That night he had done it, he looked up the names of all the shinobi who had died in the line of duty and he had felt sick. There were so many of them. And that was just this village, there were other ninja villages as well, the shinobi world was full of people who were fighting and dying for their villages and what they believed in.

All of them probably had families and friends that missed them and they all probably had hopes and dreams just like he did, that were cut short. How many of them had been like him and just didn't know, didn't realize how scary the life of a ninja could be. Or worse, how many of them were like Rin and knew exactly what they were getting into but felt like they had no other choice.

The next day after their… fight, talk, he wasn't quite sure what to call it, Rin had tried to apologize to him, saying she was out of line, but he had stopped her right there. Because she had been right, he wasn't taking his training seriously and he could get himself or someone else killed. And so from that point forward he put everything he had into getting stronger, into being the best.

It was slow going and he was nowhere near as strong as he wanted to be but he would do it. He would reach his dream of becoming Hokage, but he had a new reason for it other than gaining the recognition of those around him. One that he wouldn't share with anyone. It was to fulfill a promise that he made to himself for his friend. The Hokage was the strongest ninja in the village, he would achieve that title and he would protect everyone, and he would create a world where ninja were no longer needed, and he would do it because he never wanted to see Rin cry like that again, because he didn't want anyone to cry like that. Rin had decided that he was important enough to her that she would protect him like she was trying to protect her sister and her family, even though she hated it, even though she wanted to do literally anything else.

She said that no one in their right minds would ever choose to be a ninja, so he would create a world where she felt like she no longer had to be. Where she and everyone else could retire and pursue a life of peace. He had friends who were important to him, who believed in him even if they didn't know his full intentions, and so he would create a world where not only they, but everyone could live in peace. He would create this world for them, believe it.

"Hey, you're looking a little lost in thought there, anything you want share?" Rin asks with a smile, having fallen back to walk beside him.

Naruto grins at her, "Nope, just ready and excited to get today started, that's all. I'm going to train like nobody's business, believe it!" He says giving her a thumbs up.

"Good, we can't have our future Hokage slacking off now, can we?" She ruffles his hair affectionately.

"Definitely!"


	12. Chapter 11

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 11-xXx**

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"This is it." Quinn says softly as she quietly rolls out of bed and goes over to the alarm, turning it off before it could go off. She had been awake for the last hour and a half, feeling completely restless over what today would bring. Seven years of trials and training had led to today. Graduation day. She had seriously considered skipping today, whether or not she passed the final exam was irrelevant, her overall scores placed her at the top of the class as well as this year's rookie of the year.

It was a bitter sweet day for her. On the one hand she had worked hard for her skills. She had honed and trained herself into a powerful kunoichi, on the other hand… she may take a lot of pride in her skills but she had no more desire today to be a ninja than she did when she had first started out. She was doing this for Ino, Naruto, and Sakura. Her friends, her very best friends. She never thought she would ever meet people who she would grow as close to as Santana and Brittany, but she had found them.

If anything she was actually closer to those three than the other two. With Santana and Brittany she had been too immature, to selfish and childish to be the kind of friend that they had deserved for her to be. They cared about each other, but they weren't averse to screwing each other over to get what they wanted. But with Ino, Naruto and Sakura, she could honestly say that she would put them before herself in any situation. Whatever they needed, if she could help them, she would give it. It made her happy that she had people that she cared about so much now that she could do that with, but at the same time it made her a little sad that she was never able to reach that level with her old friends.

She would have liked to have seen them at least one more time, and apologize to them for not being the friend that they deserved. Still, there was no point in brooding on her past life right now, not when her current life was about to get so much more dangerous.

Quinn walks over to her sister's sleeping form and gently nudges her. "Ino," She whispers softly.

"Mrrghlbrrrr… five more minutes." She mumbles rolling over.

Quinn chuckles. "C'mon, it's time to get up." She says, nudging her gently once again.

"Uh-uh." Ino groans.

Quinn sighs, "Okay then, I guess we have to do this the hard way." Her finger drifting to Ino's side where she then begins to poke her.

Ino's eyes shoot wide open. "I'm awake, I'm awake!" Ino shouts, backing away from her.

Quinn laughs, Ino was super ticklish and she knew that that would get her up and out of bed faster than anything.

Ino growls at her, "Rin… you suck." She pouts, before sticking her tongue out.

"Sorry, I tried to be nice about it." Quinn says with a shrug. "Come on, let's get our morning stretches out of the way, I'll even let you have the first shower."

"Yay," Ino says, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "Just how I wanted to start my day, wake up at five in the morning and exercise." Ino huffs as she rolls out of bed.

"Oh, you're just going to be a bundle of joy today, aren't you?" Quinn teases, Ino wasn't a morning person even at the best of times and the fact that they had to be at the school an hour earlier today for testing was not something she was happy about.

"Shut up." Ino says, rolling her eyes.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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"Good morning girls." Their mother says, smiling at them as they enter the kitchen, coming back inside from their work out. When they sit down she places a plate in front of each of them with a larger than normal breakfast for them.

"Morning mom." Quinn replies happily.

"M-Mooo-aaahhhh… morning." Ino mumbles sleepily.

"This looks great mom, thanks." Quinn says, as she inhales the heavenly scent.

"Yeah, thanks mom." Ino says as well before digging in.

"Not a problem, after all today is your big day. You both finally graduate today… I'm so proud of the both of you." She says, starting choke up. "You both put in so much work to get to this point and your father and I couldn't be prouder of the both of you."

"Thanks…" Ino says, blushing under the praise but pleased nevertheless.

Quinn shrugs, "It's no big deal."

"Yes it is, you two have worked so hard to get where you are now, and you are both so far beyond where you were supposed to be. Take it from a former kunoichi, you two are going to go so far."

Both girls nod their heads.

"Now, hurry up and eat, you'll want plenty of time to get ready for today. You'll want to be at your very best."

"Oh hey, mom, did you remember to-" Ino starts to ask.

"Yes, I got two sets of them, I hope they're both the right size."

"It should be okay," Quinn says, "The one's that we wanted were a kind of one size fits all, it should be fine."

"Okay, but I kept the receipt and I talked with the smith anyway, you can take them back and get them refitted if they don't fit. No extra charge."

"You're the best."

"Thanks mom."

Ino and Quinn reply, feeling a little more excited. They had been planning to do this for a couple of months now and had been saving up their allowances for just as long.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn and Ino arrive at the academy before either Sakura or Naruto so they head over to the part of the courtyard that they liked to hang out by to wait for their friends. It was next to a tall tree with a single rope swing hanging from it. The four of them had kind of adopted it as their spot when they were outside.

It doesn't take long and the first person to arrive is Naruto.

"Ino! Rin! Good morning!" He shouts happily as he runs up to them.

"Morning."

"Good morning."

The two sister reply.

"So Naruto, are you ready for the test today?" Ino asks.

Naruto's face drops, "No… it's the stupid **Clone Jutsu**." He grumbles. "I still haven't gotten it down yet. I mean of all the final exams, of all the things that we could have covered why did that technique have to be the one that we do?"

Quinn smiles sympathetically at him. **Clone Jutsu** was by far Naruto's worst technique. He had spent hours and hours every day since they had first learned it three months ago practicing it and yet he had yet to produce a single viable double of himself. He could do **Substitution Jutsu** and **Transformation Jutsu** just fine, but there was something about the **Clone Jutsu** that stumped the poor boy.

"They probably chose it because of the three actual jutsu that we learn from this place, it's the hardest one." Sakura says coming up behind him, placing a friendly arm around his shoulders. "Good morning everybody."

Naruto sighs, "It's just not fair, I mean you three got it down so quickly, it took you guys hardly any time at all and yet I still can't even manage to make even one."

"It's because you have so much chakra." Quinn answers. "You have an insane amount, more than anyone I've ever met. The **Clone Jutsu** takes a very certain amount and the chakra control necessary to use it is… well…"

"I know, I know, my control sucks." Naruto pouts.

"No it doesn't." Ino says encouragingly, "Rin's right, you just have so much of it that it's harder for you to control it than it is for the rest of us. I mean, if you had my reserves or even Rin's who has quite a bit more than me you would probably have perfect control. I mean I'm not as strong a sensor as Rin is yet, but even I can tell your chakra levels are super high. It's not your fault you struggle in that area."

"Yeah, think of it like this. The rest of us are just trying to divert a river when we control our chakra, you're trying to control the ocean. Besides, better too much chakra than too little. I mean you wouldn't want to be stuck with my puny reserves, so don't let it get you down, okay?" Sakura says. "Even if you do fail the final, your scores are high enough in other areas that you'll still pass. This isn't a make it or break it deal for you."

"Yeah… I guess you're right, it's just frustrating because… well I've been working so hard on it and I'm getting nowhere."

Ino and Quinn exchange a glance. "Well… we might know what will cheer you up." Quinn says with a mischievous smile.

Naruto and Sakura look at them confused.

Ino steps forward. "In honor of today's events and the fact that the four of us have worked so hard to get to this point, Rin and I felt like we should do something for the two of you. You both have been the greatest friends that either of us could have ever asked for."

"So on that note," Quinn says as she pulls out two packages from her pack. "Ino and I have gotten you both a gift to celebrate our graduating today."

"Oh wow! Thanks Ino, thanks Rin!" Naruto says excitedly as he tears into his present.

"Yeah, thank you both." Sakura says with a smile as she opens up her gift as well.

When they both finish unwrapping their gifts they are both holding a set of beautifully crafted mesh-wire armor that protected both the torso and the legs. It was designed to be worn under clothing and had a similar style and design to the net wear that was popular with many ninjas throughout the world, but this was made with a strong and flexible metal that would help to turn and blunt just about any blade.

"This… wow… this is fantastic, thank you so much!" Sakura says as she hugs her two friends.

"I can't believe it, these are great!" Naruto shouts as he leaps in and hugs them as well.

Ino and Quinn both grin, glad that they decided to do this. "We're glad you like them. Let us know if they fit okay, we can always take them back or refit them if they aren't what you need." Quinn says.

"No, this looks perfect thank you…" Sakura says. "Actually I got you all something too." She says with a smile. "I was going to save it till later but-"

"Hey, hey, I got you guys something too!" Naruto says excitedly.

"Really? You didn't have to do that." Ino says and Quinn nods her agreement. Both Sakura and Naruto roll their eyes at them.

"Do you want to go first Naruto." Sakura asks him.

He shakes his head no, "No, that's okay, you said it first so you should go first, I can wait." Naruto says, bouncing excitedly on the balls of his feet.

"Okay, then…" Sakura says as she digs into her pack and pulls out three boxes, all of them the same size, each one about a foot long. As the three of them open up their presents from Sakura they see that inside the box is a well-crafted, **Kaiken**.

"This is great Sakura, thanks." Quinn says as she lifts the blade out of the box and unsheathes it, "This is incredible, thank you so much."

"Thank you Sakura, I love it." Ino says as she draws her own blade and examines it lovingly.

"This is so cool! I can't wait to use it, it's going to be awesome, believe it!" Naruto shouts as he's already giving it a couple of test jabs into thin air, taking out imaginary opponents.

Sakura beams at them, "I'm glad you guys like them, I wanted to get you guys **Wakizashi** or something but… I didn't have enough, so I hope these are okay."

"They're perfect." Quinn says hugging the other girl.

Sakura blushes heavily, before scowling at Ino and Naruto who are grinning at her, both of them well aware of her crush. She manages to get herself under control before Rin pulls away. "G-good… I'm glad. So Naruto, you said you had something for us as well."

"Oh yeah!" He says excitedly, sheathing his new blade and setting it down next to his mesh armor. He then reaches into his bag but hesitates. "Um… mine, well… it isn't as cool as the stuff you guys got me… I mean, I… well I had to make them but they… well they should work just fine… I mean, I got them appraised and everything…" He finishes shyly, before handing each of them a little rectangular box.

"Exploding tags." Ino whistles appreciatively as she opens it, "wait you said you made these?" she says sounding impressed.

"Um… yeah, I… I even had the old-man appraise them and he said they were good so… you know… it's nothing really."

"Naruto these are fantastic, I can't believe you made these." Quinn says pulling out and examining one of her tags. The designs on them were completely Naruto, on one side was an insult, that said _"Eat this, sucker!"_ and a little emoji that was sticking its tongue out underneath it and on the other side was the seal work that made the tag explosive, a simple charge of chakra from her and she was essentially holding a live paper grenade. As someone who worked with fire jutsu a lot Quinn had come to have an appreciation for explosions.

"Yeah… well I've been dabbling with **Fuinjutsu** a bit and I'm kind of getting the hang of it and so I wanted to do something nice for you guys, you know for all the help you guys have given me and stuff… and well, there's twenty each and they'll fit right inside a shuriken holster so you don't have to worry about where to keep them, and the old man said they were all combat quality and stuff so… well, I hope you guys like them…"

"Well I can tell you right now these are great Naruto, I spent quite a bit of time going over **Fuinjutsu** and while I'm certainly no master I can confidently say that these are incredible. You have a talent for it." Sakura says with a smile, hugging the boy.

"Yeah Naruto, how come you didn't tell us you were looking into **Fuinjutsu** , we could have helped you with it?" Quinn asks curiously.

"Well it's just… I'm not the sharpest kunai in the pouch you know, and this stuff is for… well smart people, if I sucked at it I didn't…" Naruto trails off.

"We wouldn't have laughed at you Naruto," Ino says, picking up exactly where Naruto was going with this. "And you are smart, maybe not book smart," She says when Naruto gives her a slightly incredulous look, "But you're clever and you think well on your feet and you have a fantastic imagination. We're your friends, we wouldn't have laughed at you. If anything I'd say we'd be impressed. **Fuinjutsu** is a difficult art to learn, the fact that you're thinking of pursuing it is impressive and judging by these tags I'd say you're off to a good start."

"Yeah," Sakura agrees, "In fact I have a couple of books and scrolls on the subject, I'll get them to you later so you can read them. They're nothing too fancy, but they should help you gain a good grasp on the basics."

"That'd be great Sakura, thanks. So… you guys really like them?" Naruto asks nervously, normally he was full of confidence or at least bravado, but what these three thought of him meant the world to him.

"They're awesome Naruto, thank you so much." Quinn thanks him, hugging her friend, the other two girls doing the same thing and offering up their own words of gratitude right after.

Quinn starts to giggle. "What's so funny?" Ino asks her sister.

"Can you imagine the look on Iruka-sensei's face when he learns that Naruto knows how to make his own explosives?" Quinn answers, cracking up.

Ino and Sakura pause for a moment before they start to laugh too, with Naruto following soon after.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Quinn was the last person in class to go in to take her test. Seeing as it was a test on the application of a skill rather than the theory, the test was held in a separate room than their usual classroom. Each student was called into an adjacent room where Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei were waiting. You would then perform the **Clone Jutsu** , the two teachers would then examine the clones and depending on how you did would determine whether or not you passed the test.

To graduate and actually obtain the rank of genin you had to have an overall class score of seventy-five percent. That meant that during the course of this final year, full of testing and review of everything you had learned up to this point, your overall score in every area had be at that percentage. The reason this particular test could make or break you was because it was worth ten percent of your grade.

The **Cone Jutsu** was chosen as the final test because it was the hardest of the three academy jutsu to perform. It required the power of the **Substitution Jutsu** and the precision of the **Transformation Jutsu** to perform. If you could successfully make a clone then theoretically you could do the other two as well, though they had been tested on the other two earlier in the year.

She could have skipped this test and she would still have graduated with flying colors, though she would miss out on her position as rookie of the year, the competitive part of her nature refused to allow that. Actually all of her friends could skip or fail this test and still graduate, even Naruto, who even if he got a zero would graduate the academy with a seventy-eight percent, three entire percentage points higher than was needed. But none of them wanted to end it that way. They had worked too hard to get where they were to just fizzle out and slide by at the end.

Of their group of friends Sakura had been the first to go in, ten minutes later she emerged from the testing room with a big smile on her face and she was holding her brand new forehead protector up so proudly. They had all rushed over to her to congratulate her.

It took a while but finally it was Naruto's turn to go. He was only in there for about five minutes, but when he came out he was carrying a forehead protector as well, though he looked a little disappointed.

"What's wrong Naruto?" Quinn asks, "You passed, you've got your headband and you're a full-fledged ninja now." She says smiling.

"Iruka-sensei didn't want to pass me. I couldn't even make single clone."

"But you didn't need to pass, your scores were all high enough in other areas to make up for it?"

"Yeah, Mizuki-sensei had to remind him of that. I just… I thought Iruka-sensei liked me you know, it just sucked that he was going to keep me from graduating if he could. If Mizuki-sensei hadn't been there I might not have gotten this, he really stepped up for me."

"Well he was right to do so, but don't let it get you down. I mean look at you Mr. Bigshot, with your brand new forehead protector." Quinn says smiling at him and bumping shoulders with him playfully.

Naruto grins, "Yeah, you're right, I've done it! I'm a ninja now and one step closer to becoming Hokage, believe it!"

Ino and Sakura come up next to congratulate him as well and finally twenty minutes later it's Ino's turn to take the test and when she emerges from the room ten minutes later, Quinn has barely a second to congratulate her sister before she is called in as well.

Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei are both sitting behind a large desk, the top of it is completely cleared except for one single forehead protector. The metal band shining deceptively brilliant against the deep blue of the cloth. It was meant to be and look alluring, she was sure of it. A nice shiny bauble to entice the young people who had worked so hard to reach it. She wondered if she herself hadn't bought into this whole thing a little more than she originally thought. As much as she hated the idea of becoming a ninja, it didn't seem to have stopped her from pushing herself to being at the very top of the class, nor did it stop a small part of her from being excited to graduate and start doing missions.

"Rin Yamanaka, are you ready to begin?" Iruka-sensei asks with a kind smile.

"Yes sensei." Quinn replies.

"Alright, then please make at least two to five clone copies of yourself and while doing so hide yourself within them to try and prevent Mizuki-sensei and myself from detecting the real you." Iruka-sensei orders.

"Don't worry about it, you've got this, easy as pie." Mizuki-sensei says with a kind smile.

Iruka-sensei nods his agreement, "Whenever you're ready."

Quinn's hands shoot into the tiger seal, the last one in the sequence and the only one that she needed. And suddenly as if walking out of her, one by one were five perfect copies of her, all them standing in a perfect line, with her being the one who had moved from position on the fourth clone.

Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei both get up and begin their inspection. They don't actually touch the clone but they do everything else that they can to determine which ones are the fakes and which one is really her. Luckily for herself and Ino, Sakura had mastered this jutsu and had taught them how to put in extra little details that don't seem like much on their own but can make all of the difference. The illusion of the sound of breathing, a shadow, a hint of a scent, things like that.

Finally after their inspection they take back their seats behind the desk. Mizuki-sensei chuckles. "Man, you three girls are something else, Miss Haruno as well as your sister gave us this kind of trouble as well. I'm going to take a guess and say that number five is the real, you."

Iruka sensei smiles as well. "I know, all three of them are becoming exceptional kunoichi. Miss Yamanaka, is number two the real you?"

Quinn allows her clones to disperse. "Nope, I am number four." She say with a smile as she disperses the clones.

"You have officially graduated and I am pleased to inform you, though officially I shouldn't be telling you this yet, that you have been ranked as this year's rookie of the year. A note of commendation will be placed inside of your official records, congratulations, you pass." Iruka-sensei beams at her. "Please step forward and claim your forehead protector, it marks you as a true shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Today is a big step forward for you, enjoy it, but just know that after today the real work begins, but I have every confidence that you will not only succeed, but excel as well."

"But don't worry about that today, go home and party hard, you especially have earned it." Mizuki-sensei says with a carefree wink, though to Quinn it seemed a little forced.

Quinn bows to the both of them. "Thank you both for all that you have taught me." She then steps forward and grabs her forehead protector.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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When Quinn steps out from the testing room and back into the classroom room it's to the cheers and whoops of her friends, she holds her forehead protector up high and they all run up to her and tackle her in a big group hug.

"Alright, we're all finally ninja, ninja, ninja! Believe it!" Naruto shouts excitedly.

"I know right, how insane is this? We've all come so far since that first day." Ino says. "I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings."

"Well whatever it is, we're totally going to kick ass." Sakura beams, holding her hand out for a fist bump to Ino who returns it.

"Definitely. Hey do any of you know when they're going to post the class scores, I want to see where I finished at?" Ino asks.

"Iruka-sensei is usually pretty quick at getting our scores up, I'd say we'll know them by tomorrow, Wednesday at the latest." Quinn says with a shrug. "I wouldn't worry about it too much."

"Easy for you to say, everyone knows you're ranked at number one." Sakura scoffs. "I want to know how I did too."

"I completely failed so I probably dropped a rank or two." Naruto says with a sigh.

"You passed the academy, that's all that mattered. You'll master the clone technique, just keep practicing and you'll get it eventually, believe it." Quinn says, stealing Naruto catch phrase.

As the four friends leave the classroom and head outside the school it's to a large crowd of not only their classmates but kids from the other classes in their year as well as a bunch of adults and parents all there to greet and congratulate their kids. The students had the next week off, a time for them to prepare and celebrate with their families, and then next Monday they would receive their team assignments.

"Ino, Rin, girls over here." The two girls hear their father call out, they turn in that direction and see their father and mother as well as Sakura's mom and dad are all standing together and waiting for them. Sakura runs up to her parents while Quinn and Ino go up to theirs. Naruto goes to follow them but feels a tap on his shoulder and when he turns to see who it is, he sees that it's Mizuki-sensei standing their smiling at him.

"Ino, Rin, we are both so very proud of the both of you. This is a huge day, you've worked so hard and we just couldn't be prouder." Their father says, beaming down at them.

Megumi pulls both of her daughters in for a hug. "You both have grown up so fast, it seems like only yesterday you were just my little babies and now you're all grown up." Her voice cracks a bit and she has tears in her eyes but she's smiling as well, completely and totally proud of her daughters.

"Well, how about it, why don't we all take our kids out for a big dinner to celebrate." Kizashi, Sakura's father suggests as he and his wife Mebuki, and Sakura move in closer to join them.

"That would be awesome, can we?" Ino asks their parents.

"Yeah sure, that sounds great, you're welcome to join us too Naruto. Congratulations by the way, we're really proud of you as well." Megumi says with a smile as Naruto finally joins them.

Naruto bows, he really wasn't one for manners or formality, all of those social rules seemed silly to him, but he really liked and respected Mrs. Yamanaka so he tried to be good when around her. "Thanks, and I would love to join you but… um, well there's this thing I have to work on, but thanks for the invitation."

"Are you sure, you know that you're more than welcome." Inoichi throws in. He would always feel a little disappointment at the fact that his girls hadn't bonded with Shikaku's and Chouza's boys like he had hoped, after all they were his best friends, but that didn't mean he didn't like Naruto or Sakura. On the contrary, he thought the world of both of them and that they were both very good friends for his two girls to have.

"Yeah, come on Naruto, you have to join us." Quinn says, "We all graduated, this is a time for us to be together as a family."

Naruto could feel himself choke up when he hears Rin refer to him as family, which only firmed his resolve. "I'd love to but I have this thing I need to do."

"What thing?" Ino asks.

Naruto chuckles nervously, "It's nothing really… well it's not nothing, but it's a surprise and I'll tell you all about it tomorrow, but it can't wait. It's really awesome though… or it will be, believe it!" He says with a giant grin and a thumbs up.

Quinn looks at him suspiciously, "You aren't going to pull a prank or something are you, like you aren't going to paint the Hokage's Monument or something else like that?"

Naruto's eyes light up while Sakura and Ino groan. "Don't give him ideas." Sakura scolds her.

Naruto chuckles, "No, I hadn't thought of doing that! I'll have to give it a try sometime, but no, tonight is something else entirely."

Quinn decides to scan Naruto, worried that he might not be coming with them because he felt uncomfortable or like an intruder, and she wasn't going to let him miss out because of it. But when she gets a read on his emotions he seems super happy, almost bursting with excitement. Whatever it was he had planned, he was really excited for.

She smiles at her friend and as she subdues her ability pulls him in for a hug. "Alright, but you better tell us all about it tomorrow. Deal?"

"Deal. I'll see you guys tomorrow okay?" He says with a wave as turns around and takes off.

"Is he okay?" Ino asks, with Sakura looking on worried as well.

"He's fantastic, in fact I don't think I've ever seen him this excited before." Quinn answers.

"Well, if everything is good, then let's go out to eat." Inoichi says, "Where would you all like to go?"

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn was sitting on her bed in meditation, the black fire of the **Amaterasu** was still haunting the peripherals of her dreams but she found that a good half an hour of meditation right before she went to bed usually kept it suppressed. Meanwhile Ino was over on her bed reading and giggling over some kind of article in one of her magazines. Quinn lifts her head up in concern when she senses her father approaching, he seems deeply troubled.

"Dad's coming, something's wrong." Quinn informs Ino who puts down her magazine as their father knocks and then enters their room.

"What's wrong daddy?" Ino asks, seeing the troubled look on her father's face.

"Do you two know how Naruto might try to leave the village?" He asks them seriously.

Both Quinn and Ino can't help but snort at that, it sounded ridiculous, nobody loved Konoha more than Naruto did. "Leave the village, that's crazy." Ino says in disbelief.

"Yeah daddy, why would Naruto leave Konoha, what's going on?"

"Girls, I don't know how to say this, but Naruto…"

Quinn and Ino exchange an anxious look.

"Naruto what, what's going on, is he okay?" Quinn asks nervously, Ino is listening in as well, both girls worried about their friend.

Inoichi sighs, "I'm still not quite sure what to make of it, but Naruto has stolen a top secret scroll, filled with forbidden jutsu. If that scroll were to get into the hands of an enemy of the village there is no telling the kind of trouble that could mean for all of us. I just want to find him, but there is talk among the ranks of him going rogue and some of those searching for him aren't as inclined as I am to ask questions."

Quinn is on her feet instantly, "I'll find him!"

 **s**

 **xXx—xXx**

 **s**

 **Author's Note. So, I feel like this is kind of where the real story begins. We're finally in step with the anime. Some changes will be obvious, other's will be a little more subtle. With the graduation test I needed something that could explain how someone like Lee could graduate without being able to perform any ninjutsu or genjutsu, and so to me the final exam wasn't an all or nothing kind of test, it was just worth a huge enough part of the final grade that if you weren't well rounded everywhere else it could make or break you. Someone like Lee who can't use ninjutsu or genjutsu, is still skilled enough in the other areas of ninjutsu that being unable to create a clone and the like would hurt his final grade, maybe even guarantee a dead last position, but you could still graduate. It's why Naruto could fail this test and still pass. As always, please excuse any spelling and grammar errors, I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful. Anyway I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.**


	13. Chapter 12

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 12-xXx**

 **s**

Rin was pacing their room angrily while Ino sat on her bed and looked on. She had never thought in a million years that Rin would ever yell at their father like she had, and she had never thought she would see her father truly get angry at one of them either.

 _"I'll find him." Rin shouts, already releasing her hold on her sensor ability and trying to locate Naruto, but to her surprise she was having some difficulty._

 _"No." Their father says firmly._

 _Rin stops short and even Ino is surprised by this._

 _"What! Why!?" Rin asks angrily, "I can locate him no problem? Just give me a minute, or better yet, let me go look for him."_

 _Inoichi shakes his head. "Until I know more I don't want either of you involved with this."_

 _Rin glares at him, "What's there to know, he's our friend and he's in some kind of trouble, I don't know why you're so afraid right now but it's stupid. Let me find him and-"_

 _"I said no!" He shouts, and both Rin and Ino flinch. He takes a moment to try and calm himself. "You are not to get involved," He says in a forced calm. "Naruto is… there are things about him that you don't know, that you don't understand, it may end up being nothing but I'm not going to have you in danger if it is."_

" _Danger, you fucking let us become ninja, who the hell are you to tell us that something is dangerous!?" Rin shouts back and their father flinches as if he's been slapped. "My friend is in trouble and you want me to just sit around and wait for people who might hurt him to find him! Screw that!"_

 _Rin moves towards the door but their father steps in front of her. "Rin! You will stay here, you will not go out there and you will leave finding Naruto to us. He has essentially committed treason tonight, he needs to be found, but it needs to be done by qualified shinobi forces, if you want to help him you'll tell me his usual hang out spots." He says._

 _Rin glares at their father before looking away from him._

" _Rin…" Ino scolds her softly, "Daddy… check the north side park as well as Ichiraku's Ramen stand, he may not be there but he's close to the family that runs it, they may know something."_

" _Thank you Ino… Rin," He sighs, "I know you're upset but… I'm just trying to look out for you. There are things you don't know that… it's just too dangerous for you to look for him. Please try to understand."_

 _Rin doesn't say anything and she pointedly refuses to look at him._

After their father had left Rin had begun to pace the room. She knew that her sister was upset and Ino was worried too, but everything would be okay. "Rin, you crossed the line with daddy tonight." She says softly.

Rin stops her pacing and closes her eyes tightly, a flash of pain crossing her face. "He was afraid of Naruto, not of what Naruto might do or what might happen to him, but he was afraid of Naruto himself, because apparently there are things about him we don't understand." She says softly, her voice slightly cracking.

"Rin…"

Rin looks up at her and Ino can see that her sister is forcing back tears. "Well guess what, I know all I need to know about him, he's my friend, nothing else matters." Rin gets a resolute look in her eyes, before going over to the window and opening it. "I'm going after him." And with that Rin jumps out the widow and into the night.

"Rin get back here! Daddy said not to go anywhere!"

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

This was fantastic, Mizuki-sensei was so cool for doing this for him. Now that he had the scroll he just needed to get to the spot that Mizuki-sensei had told him about and learn one technique from it before Mizuki-sensei met him there, and if he did that, if he was able to do that then…

 _"Oi, Naruto." Mizuki-sensei says smiling as he taps him on the shoulder._

 _Naruto pauses from following after Rin, Ino, and Sakura. "Oh, hey Mizuki-sensei, what's up?"_

 _"Hey, I just wanted to congratulate you on passing, that's all. We had to rush you out fairly quickly because we still had others that we needed to test but now that it's over I wanted to do it properly."_

 _Naruto scratches the back of his head and chuckles, "Heh-heh, thanks Mizuki-sensei."_

 _"No, I mean it, teaching you has been an… interesting experience, but one that I'm glad that I had, I think you'll go far one day Naruto."_

 _"Really!? Thanks… too bad Iruka-sensei doesn't seem to feel the same way…" He grumbles remembering how the other man had wanted to fail him._

 _Mizuki-sensei chuckles. "Don't judge Iruka-sensei too harshly, he actually thinks very highly of you, he was just worried for you is all. He let that concern cloud his judgment but it wasn't done out of malice. Actually he sees a lot of himself in you."_

 _"Really?" Naruto asks, his eyes widen with surprise. He looked up to Iruka-sensei and so it had hurt his feelings when the other man had tried to fail him._

 _"Really." Mizuki-sensei says with a laugh, "Now, you'd better go to your friends, after all, this might very well be the last you see any of them for a long time."_

 _That stops Naruto up short. "W-what? What do you mean?"_

 _Mizuki-sensei scratches the back of his head sheepishly. "Well it's just that all three of them are at the top of the class, I mean they are three of the most exceptional students I've ever seen come through the program, of course they're going to be placed together after the academy, it only makes sense. And I mean no offense to you Naruto, you've worked hard to get where you are but… they're in a completely different league from you right now, your scores were good enough to pass, but to be placed with them well... You'll be placed with people who are more at your level, so you probably won't see them for a long time."_

 _"What… no… I-I guess I never really thought of that… But… I really wanted us to continue on, together…" Naruto felt sick inside. He hadn't really thought of it until now but of course he wouldn't be placed with his friends._

 _"Well maybe… no, better not." Mizuki-sensei says distractedly._

 _"No, what? Tell me?"_

 _"Well there may be a way for you to be placed on the same team as them, but no just forget about it."_

 _"No! Please tell me Mizuki-sensei, please, I'll do whatever it takes to be placed with them, believe it!"_

 _Mizuki-sensei chuckles, "Alright you can't tell anyone, I don't want to get in trouble for playing favorites after all."_

 _"I promise, I won't tell anyone anything, tell me how to be put on their team!?"_

 _"There is a special extra-credit exam you can take that could boost your overall score up to where theirs are, but it'll be hard and you'll have to keep it a secret."_

 _"I'll do it, no problem, just tell me what it is!"_

 _"Heh, you're all fired up, alright, meet me on the roof in fifteen minutes."_

He couldn't fail, he had to learn this technique, that way he could stay with his friends. When he arrives at the agreed upon spot that Mizuki-sensei told him about he gets right to work.

"Alright! I'm going to have this jutsu down in no time flat, believe it!" He shouts as he eagerly opens up the large scroll that he had taken from the Old Man's office and looks at the very first technique. "What!? Not another clone jutsu!"

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Naruto!"

Naruto's head shoots up, he had been nodding off finally having learned the first technique on the scroll and was feeling a little tired. "Rin? What are you doing here?"

"Thank god," She says as she runs up to him and wrapping him in a tight hug.

"Rin? What's going on, are you okay?" Naruto asks confused, he'd seen the look of fear on her face morph into absolute relief as she had run up to him.

However she doesn't answer him when she pulls away instead asking her own questions. "Are you okay, you're not hurt are you?"

Naruto shakes his head, "No, of course not, I'm fine but Rin what are you doing here, you can't be here?"

"Me? What are you doing here, what the hell Naruto, what's going on here and what are you doing way out here on your own and with that scroll? Do you have any idea how worried I was about you?"

Naruto looks at his friend, a little embarrassed. "I'm fine Rin, in fact everything is great!" He finishes excitedly, "I did it, I captured the scroll and learned a jutsu from it, isn't that awesome!?"

Rin looks at him confused and then he remembers that she doesn't know about the exam. "Oh yeah, right, well you see it's extra credit. If I capture this scroll and learn a technique from it, all without getting caught, then that would boost my scores up high enough that I could be placed on the same team as you and the others. Isn't that great, I did it, we're going to be a team!" He says happily.

Rin's face softens, "Oh Naruto… I'm really proud of you for being able to learn a new technique so fast, and… I want to be on the same squad as you as well, honestly I completely forgot about that… but Naruto, this is serious. Everyone thinks you stole this scroll and have gone rogue, they're saying you committed treason." Rin says softly.

"What!?" Naruto shouts, "No, no way! I would never betray Konoha, it's my home! No, no, no, it's a test, an exam for extra credit, that's all. They just need to talk to Mizuki-sensei, he'll clear this up."

"Mizuki-sensei?"

"Yeah, he told me if I captured this scroll and could learn one jutsu from it, he would then meet me here and he could make sure that I was on the same team as you, Ino, and Sakura. This is all just a big misunderstanding that's all- Rin?"

Rin had stopped listening to him about half way through and was looking off into the distance. "Shit," she mutters under her breath. "Naruto give me a kunai, I left my equipment at home." She orders him.

"What, why?"

"Just do it and whatever you do don't give that scroll to anyone!" She says urgently.

As Naruto is reaching for a kunai to give her she suddenly jumps in front of him. "Damn it! Naruto, stay behind me." She orders him as she gets into a fighting stance.

He was about to ask her what was wrong when he sees a figure come flying through the trees and slam into the ground near them, he was covered in laceration and bruises and had a couple of kunai sticking out of him. He was pale and breathing heavily and was struggling to get to his hands and knees. But the worst thing of all was the giant gash on his back that was bleeding profusely. The man looked to be seconds away from death. It takes him a second but Naruto eventually recognizes that the person is Iruka-sensei.

"Iruka-sensei!" He shouts out, dropping the kunai. He tries to rush to his teacher's aide but Rin holds an arm out blocking him.

"Rin-"

"Stay back you two!" Iruka-sensei shouts, before he starts hacking and coughing up blood. "Mizuki- he- he's-"

"A traitor, I know." Rin says calmly. "And you may as well come out you bastard because you can't hide from me."

"What… a traitor?" Naruto was completely confused now.

A sinister laugh fills the small clearing they were in. "You really are some kind of genius, aren't you?" Mizuki-sensei suddenly appears across the clearing from them. "Though you can't be too smart, you came here didn't you, and now you're going to share the same fate as these two."

"You two run, get out of here!" Iruka-sensei screams at them, the fear for his students' lives evident in his voice. "I'll hold him off!"

"No offense sensei, but you're in no condition to do anything and if I leave you'll be dead in a matter of seconds and he'll be able to catch up to us no problem." Rin closes her eyes and takes a shaky breath but when she opens them she seems perfectly calm. "Naruto, return to the village and find my father, tell him that Mizuki is a traitor and that Iruka-sensei and I intercepted him." Rin orders.

Naruto is looking around wildly at the three other people in the clearing, he was having trouble comprehending all of this. Why were Rin and Iruka-sensei calling Mizuki-sensei a traitor, this was all just a big misunderstanding. "M-Mizuki-sensei… what are you doing? Tell them, tell them that this is all just a big mistake. That this is just a make-up test. I- I- I'll take the scroll back… I mean, did I grab the wrong one? I thought that it was right but maybe… I grabbed the wrong one by accident."

"Naruto…" Iruka-sensei says softly, his eyes full of pity.

And even Rin is giving him a look that's soft and full of sadness.

Mizuki-sensei just laughs but it's not the kind, if somewhat teasing, laugh that he associated with the other man, this one was cruel and vicious. "No, you didn't grab the wrong scroll Naruto. In fact you exceeded my every expectation, and if this really were a test, then you would have indeed passed."

"What…?"

"You simpleton, don't worry about it, just hand over the scroll and you can all go home."

"No!" Iruka-sensei shouts.

"Don't do it Naruto, run back to the village and get my father." Rin says once again, this time more firmly.

"Naruto's not going anywhere!" Mizuki shouts as he reaches behind his back where he grabs a giant shuriken and wings it towards Naruto. Rin grabs Naruto by his jacket and yanks them both to the ground to avoid it, from there she quickly gets up on one knee and holds up the tiger seal and seven small fire balls appear around her, Naruto recognizes it as Rin's **Phoenix Flower Jutsu,** and then they shoot towards Mizuki, who manages to dodge some of them and take cover from the rest.

"Naruto go!" She shouts at him, as she grabs the kunai he had dropped and charges in.

"Rin no!" Iruka-sensei shouts, trying to get to his feet but he stumbles and falls back to the ground.

Naruto doesn't run however, he can't run, he's paralyzed with fear. He can feel it radiating off of Mizuki, a strong desire to kill them all. All he can do is watch as his best friend and his teacher fight, and all he can think is that this is all his fault.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn was forever grateful that she had mastered the **Substitution Jutsu** , because that was the only reason she was still alive right now. Mizuki was fast, faster than she had anticipated a chūnin to be anyway, and it was clear that the man was more skilled than he had ever let on. However her ability to almost instantly pick and switch with her targets, without the use of hand seals, was making it a more even fight than it should have been. He was constantly on the offense though, striking at her with everything he had while she was just scraping by on a barely adequate defense. Ducking and weaving, blocking and taking a lesser hit to avoid a fatal one, and substituting away when she could.

He thrusts his kunai towards her, aiming to slice her neck open, she quickly sends her chakra out and just a fraction of a second before the knife can hit her she activates the **Substitution Jutsu** and is pulled to safety, from their she charges at him again, her own kunai in hand. She would love to be able to put some real distance between them and use her fire jutsu to fight this guy but with Naruto still there and Iruka-sensei injured she was limited in her movements, forced to keep herself between Mizuki and them. And if she tried to use her fire jutsu anyway, the area was too small and she ran the risk of hitting one of them. She was essentially fighting with the metaphorical hand tied behind her back. She couldn't go all out without putting Naruto and Iruka-sensei at risk.

She jumps and rolls to the left as he slashes at her again and then thinking she sees an opening flings her kunai at him. However he is easily able to dodge, she is then forced to summersault backwards when he brings his foot down on her for a drop kick, it barely misses her and the force of the kick sends debris everywhere.

However this attack once again left him open and from her current position, if she aimed up at him, she wouldn't run the risk of hitting Naruto or Iruka. She holds up the tiger seal and spits out a fire ball at him, but he drops down low, the flame missing him completely and he uses the momentum of his drop to swing himself into a round house kick that catches her across the face.

Quinn goes flying across the ground rolling and tumbling, she gathers chakra into her hands and grasps at the ground, sliding but managing catch and stabilize herself. A shadow from the moonlight passes overhead and when she looks up she sees Mizuki jumping high above her, grabbing another one of his giant shuriken and flinging it at her.

Quinn watches as the spinning blade travels towards her at an incredible speed, she could substitute out of the way of course but that would keep her on the defensive and if she wanted any hope of winning this she needed to go on the offensive. She holds both of her hands forward, all of her fingers pointed at the giant shuriken, she then gathers chakra into all of her finger tips and uses the **Chakra String** jutsu to latch onto it, she then yanks the spinning blade whipping it around her and redirecting the attack back towards Mizuki.

She then wastes zero time in attaching a chakra string to the still air-born Mizuki, who contorts his body out of the path of the redirected shuriken and harm's way. She once more holds up the seal of the tiger, and before she releases the **Dragon Fire Jutsu** , she begins to convert the chakra of the chakra string from normal chakra into fire chakra. She then releases the jutsu which takes on the appearance of a dragon's head and runs along the string straight towards the traitor.

That was the secret of being able to use the **Dragon Fire Jutsu** with the **Chakra String Jutsu** , a second before you released the technique, you begin to convert the chakra string into fire chakra. Normally doing this would cause the chakra string to destabilize and break after a few seconds but because it was consumed by the concentrated flame of the **Dragon Fire Jutsu** the instability didn't matter. And the **Dragon Fire Jutsu** now shared a chakra affinity with the string which had been converted to fire chakra so it didn't completely overwhelm and destroy it allowing the jutsu to follow the string to her target. Doing this required incredible control and perfect timing and was one of the things she was most proud of herself for figuring out.

The **Dragon Fire Jutsu** was her second most powerful technique, her most powerful being way too uncontrollable for her current situation. The **Dragon Fire Jutsu** was fairly unpredictable on its own, anyway. It needed to be guided to its target, it was too unstable to just launch. If you didn't know what you were doing and how to use it you were as likely to hit a friend with this technique or even blowing yourself up as you were of hitting the enemy. Controlling it meant one of two things, it meant using it in extremely short distances, short enough that the user might get caught in the blast or it meant using ninja wire to give the flames a path to follow, which took a lot of time and preparation to do, especially if it was during a battle. Her combination with the **Chakra String Jutsu** meant that she could use the **Dragon Fire Jutsu** at almost any range and with very little preparation, she just needed to be able to see and connect her chakra string to her target.

Unfortunately, Mizuki had made chūnin for a reason and he was able to substitute out of danger just in time, so all her jutsu did was explode against and incinerate a log. She could sense where he landed exactly, not that he was actively trying to hide from her, but her abilities made it impossible for him to do so. However he was fast and she barely had time to roll out of the way as his fist came crashing down where her head had been. She takes a quick step back to dodge another one of Mizuki's kicks and then does a backwards cartwheel to dodge a second kick and then holds her arm up to block and redirect a third kick aimed at her head. The force behind it was incredible and she could feel the bones in her arm crack under the pressure but it was better than taking the blow to her head.

Mizuki then jabs towards her with a kunai, but instead of dodging she decides to take a chance and try something. She redirects the path of the blade so that it stabs into her shoulder, making it just a flesh wound instead of something serious. It still hurt like hell though and she gasps in pain when it hits, but she stays focused and she then wraps her own arm around the one holding the kunai, and then using chakra to enhance her grip, she holds him in place. She then grabs his other arm with her free hand, so that the two of them are locked in a grapple. He's stronger than she is but she only needs a couple of seconds to make this work.

"What do you think you're trying to accomplish, you little bitch?" He snarls, pissed off that he was having so much trouble with some little fresh from the academy brat. He knew she was talented, he'd helped to teach her after all, but this was ridiculous.

Quinn however ignores, him and she begins the process of converting her chakra from normal chakra into fire chakra, she doesn't need complete conversion, which is good because she still hadn't been able to pull that off, she just needed enough to be able to perform a fire jutsu without hand seals. At this range she couldn't miss, she just needed the time.

"Do you have any idea what it is that you're defending!?" He snarls at her.

She can sense Naruto's confusion as well as Iruka-sensei's distress and fear spike at this.

"NO MIZUKI, DON'T SAY ANYTHING!" Iruka-sensei shouts, struggling to his feet and managing to stand for all of two seconds before collapsing again. In his mind he was cursing himself and the other man to the deepest pits of hell. Mizuki for being a traitor and himself for allowing himself to be ambushed and injured in the first place.

Quinn scoffs, that's right, keep him talking, she just needed more time. Note to self, in future fights get her enemies to monologue.

"Yeah, I'm defending my friend." She answers him with a glare. Poor Naruto was frozen with fear and confusion and he still hadn't moved from his spot. Just keep him talking, that's all she had to do, she just needed a little more time. Ignore what he's saying and just keep him talking.

Mizuki outright laughs at that and viciously twists the kunai in her shoulder, causing her to cry out in pain, but it doesn't quite manage to break her concentration and it only makes her hold on to him tighter. "He isn't your friend, he's a monster. Do you hear that Naruto!? You're a monster, a demon!" Mizuki shouts over her shoulder at the boy. Naruto flinches.

"Shut up Mizuki!" Iruka screams, "Don't say anything, it's forbidden!"

"You think I care, this girl is about to die, and I want her to know why." He mocks them.

"Is it because you're a traitorous slime-ball?" Quinn grunts out distractedly, keep him talking, she was almost there.

"It's because that boy there is really the nine-tailed fox demon that almost destroyed this village twelve years ago, you're going to die defending a demon!" He shouts gleefully.

"No!" Iruka-sensei shouts and she can hear Naruto's horrified gasp and can literally sense the turmoil build rapidly inside of him when he hears this.

"No." Quinn says calmly before gasping out in pain as once more Mizuki twist the kunai.

"Yes," He laughs, "That boy is in-fact the nine-tailed demon fox, given a human form. He attacked and almost destroyed this village. And _you_ , you stupid little bitch, are going to die defending a monster. How does it feel to know that the person that you thought was your friend is actually a demon!?"

"Th-that's not true… is it?" Naruto asks meekly, "Am… am I really a monster?"

"You're wrong." Quinn grunts out, wincing as once more Mizuki twists the blade.

"No, no I'm not, ask anyone who was there, ask Iruka or your father, or the even the Hokage, they'll all tell you the same thing. Naruto is a demon and he deserves to die, but I will admit I find your denial of the whole thing is quite funny, if not a little pathetic!" Mizuki cackles, clearly enjoying the impact that his words were having on Naruto and Iruka.

Quinn finally loses her patience with the man. "Let me clarify you bastard, I'm not in denial, I'm saying flat out that you're wrong!" She snarls at him. She could feel the pain that his words were inflicting on her friend and she had had enough.

"Do you think I'm stupid or just completely incompetent? I've been friends with Naruto how many years now? And during that time, all of those hours and days, weeks and months, years of training and laughing and growing together. Did you honestly think that not once in that entire time that a sensor type as powerful as me never picked up on his second chakra source!?" She yells at him.

Mizuki's eyes widen in shock but Quinn wasn't done yet. "Did you honestly think that, or did you just assume that once I had sensed it that I wouldn't look up everything that I could about it? That I didn't check up on bloodlines or artifacts or something that might provide an answer as to why a little boy, who not only has more chakra inside him than anyone else, but also a secondary source that is completely different than his own!? Did you think I'd never heard of the term Jinchūriki, the power of human sacrifice!?"

"You- you knew!" Mizuki says shocked, and she can sense the total surprise of the other two as well.

"Of course I knew," she scoffs, looking at the man in front of her utter contempt, "It's the worst kept secret in the village, and I can say with absolute certainty that not only are you wrong about Naruto as well as being a traitor, but you're completely incompetent as a ninja too." She spits out at him. "Because if you had done even five minutes worth of research into it you would know that Naruto isn't a demon, he's a container, a jail that holds the beast at bay. He's a hero who protects us all!"

Quinn takes in a shuddering breath, finally having converted enough chakra to make her attack. "And that's not all, even if you were right, even if he were a demon, which he's not, it wouldn't matter to me because he's still Naruto, he's still my friend and I am still going to kill you for hurting him! **Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu**!" She screams, fighting through the pain and bringing the technique into focus, releasing it right into Mizuki's face.

Mizuki shrieks in agony as the flames consume him completely from the shoulders up. He releases the hold he has on her and kicks her away as hard as he can, with enough force to break her own grip on him and send her flying through the air where she crashes into a tree hard, knocking the wind out of her as she falls to the ground.

Mizuki's horrified screams fill the air as he desperately tries to put the flames out, but when he finally manages to do so his face is a melted and charred mess, completely unrecognizable from before. His hair has been incinerated completely off and his entire head is covered in multiple second and third degree burns and bits of his charcoaled skull show through where some of the flesh had been seared completely off.

"Gahh…" He breaths in and out heavily, the scent of burning flesh assaulting the clearing. "Yu… you.. I.. ghaaa, I'll kill yuo!" He screams as he channels what's left of his chakra through his body to keep himself together. Surviving on the force of his hatred alone. The wounds were fatal but he would be damned if he wasn't going to kill her before they did.

He charges at her with an inhuman speed and kicks her up off the ground and into the air where he grabs her throat and slams her into the tree, squeezing with everything he has, trying to crush her throat. He can feel himself fading, he needs to act fast. However before he can do anything else he feels a force slam into the side of his head, it breaks his grip on her and it sends him sprawling across the ground.

Naruto is now standing between the two of them, his chakra whirling around him in a blue blaze. "Don't you touch her!" He snarls.

Mizuki struggles to his hands and knees, doing his best to glare at the boy as much as his burnt and disfigured face would allow. "Grrah… yu… brat… demon…" he chokes out, and with a final haggard breath, Mizuki collapses and dies.

"Rin! Iruka-sensei!" Naruto cries out a second later, unsure of what to do next.

Quinn takes a shaky breath, trying to stay calm and not freak out that she had just killed someone. She tries to sit up and as she does she could feel it, she had cracked a couple of ribs from the impact, combine that with her throat feeling like it was swollen and closed up, and breathing was becoming more difficult. Naruto drops to her side and helps her lean up against the tree.

"L-let me help you with that." He says, his voice shaking, as he reaches for the kunai still lodged in her shoulder, the kunai hadn't initially hit anything too vital, but with Mizuki having twisted the blade a couple of time it had torn up her shoulder pretty badly and probably had nicked an artery by this point and if she didn't get it looked at soon she would probably die of blood loss, ironically the kunai was acting as a cork of sorts for her, stemming the worst of the bleeding. But she knew she didn't have a lot of time.

She shakes her head. "No… go get help, Iruka-sensei is fading fast..." She could sense his chakra signature slowly fading away.

Naruto's head snaps over to where the man is, "Ah, Iruka-sensei!"

"Hurry Naruto… we'll be okay… but you have to hurry." She could feel herself fading, the adrenaline from the fight was wearing off and she was losing consciousness, as the blood loss and other injuries were finally catching up to her.

"I'm so sorry Rin." Naruto starts to cry.

"What for…? You're safe, that's… that's what… matters…" She manages to say before slipping into unconsciousness.

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 **xXx—xXx**

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 **Author's Note. So this was a difficult chapter to write, one reason is writing combat is hard for me. I can visualize what it looks like and what happens just fine, but actually translating that into writing is difficult. I hope I improve as time goes on, but yeah, I really struggled with writing the fight. I'm also not entirely thrilled with how close to the anime this chapter is, I mean, it's a little different in that Mizuki actually dies in this fight but still the point of an AU, which this is, is to see what could have happened in place of what did. If I just follow the anime and manga there's really no point in reading this, you can just go watch the anime and manga. However, for this event I chose to stick closer to the anime for a couple of reasons. One, Naruto without Shadow Clone Jutsu just isn't Naruto and this was an easy way to give it to him. Two, I needed something that would drive home to Naruto and eventually the others that the world they are entering isn't a game. I mean, yes, in this story they do take their training a lot more seriously, but this kind of drives it home for them. It becomes a less abstract notion to him and the others.**

 **I had Quinn/Rin fight Mizuki instead of Naruto for a couple of reasons as well. The main reason being that Quinn/Rin's entire motivation for becoming a ninja is to protect her friends. She's not going to let Naruto fight if she's there to protect him. The other main reason is because in the anime, at Naruto's first exposure to real combat he freezes. When the Demon Brother's attacked Tazuna at the beginning of the Wave arc, Naruto freezes while Sasuke and Sakura don't. This was Naruto's moment of hesitation, his moment of regret through which he finds his resolve. It's difficult at times, trying to determine what to change and what keep the same. By Quinn/Rin's very existence, some things just have to change, but deciding what and why can be hard. Her existence, her actions, affect the world around her, but she isn't the center of the universe, there are some things that she doesn't affect at all while other events are completely different. Exploring her effect on the Naruto-verse is a lot of fun, but can be challenging. I want to keep this a familiar world but in that same breath, if some things don't change then as I said above, there's no point in reading this.**

 **Whatever the case, if you actually managed to read through my above babbling I truly do hope you all enjoyed this chapter and have enjoyed the story so far. I would also like to take a second and thank everyone who has taken the time to read this story of mine, it's a strange fic, I know that, Glee and Naruto don't exactly mesh, but it's been fun to write so far and I'm glad there are people out there who are enjoying it.**


	14. Chapter 13

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 13-xXx**

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A quiet moan filled the darkened hospital room. It was almost five in the morning, but Megumi is up instantly, moving to her daughter's bedside. Rin's eyes begin to flutter and Megumi can feel her heart swell with joy. The doctors had said that she could wake up at any time now.

"Mmm… mom?" She mumbles out. She sounds exhausted and confused.

"Hi baby." She whispers softly, gently stroking her daughter's hair, careful not to touch the giant black and blue bruise that covered her face from when she had been kicked.

"W-wha… where am I?" Rin's eyes lazily looks around, unable to focus on any one thing. The pain meds she was currently on, while suppressing any real pain, were also making her high and disoriented.

"You're at the hospital."

"Huh… why?"

"Because you were hurt baby."

"I'm hurt…?"

"Yeah, you got hurt, but you're going to be just fine."

"How'd that happen?" she mumbles confusedly, her face scrunching as she tries and fails to recall what happened.

Megumi's voice hitches for a moment, "Mi-Mizuki, your sensei, was a traitor… He was going to hurt your friends, but you stopped him. My brave girl." Megumi pushes Rin's bangs from her face.

"Oh… that's good."

"Yeah… Are you okay, how are you feeling?" Megumi asks her, wanting to make sure that she truly wasn't in any pain.

"I'm… tired…" Rin groans out weakly.

"That's okay baby," Megumi says as she places a kiss to Rin's forehead, "You go back to sleep, alright."

"M-kay… luv… you."

"I love you too."

It doesn't take more than a couple of seconds for Rin's breathing to even out and for her to fall right back to sleep. The last two days had been hell on earth, waiting for her daughter to wake up. The doctors had said that she would be fine and that there would be no permanent damage, but until Megumi saw her daughter wake up with her own two eyes, she didn't trust what anyone said.

But now that Rin had finally woken up, even if it was only for a minute, she could finally breathe a little easier, something that she hadn't been able to do since Ino had come down stairs and told her that Rin went after Naruto. She liked Naruto and she thought him a sweet boy but he had been suspected of treason at the time and not only that, he was a jinchūriki. She knew that the boy wasn't a demon, but he still carried one inside of him and she knew that the human wasn't always in control. She had had the unfortunate luck to go on a mission once where she had seen what happened when the beast inside took over.

The destruction had been terrible, friend and foe alike had been targeted by the mad beast's rage. It was the one time she could recall Konoha and Kumo ninja's coming together during the war, they had to in order to survive against the beast. It had been in the final months of the second shinobi world war and she had only been a chūnin at the time and was acting as an assistant to one of the jōnin in charge of diplomatic negotiations with the land of lightning. She hadn't seen what had triggered the jinchūriki, causing it to go berserk but she had seen the carnage it had invoked. The humans that contained these monsters weren't always monsters themselves, Naruto was living proof of that, but that didn't change the fact of what they held inside them, or that at any moment it could try to escape.

When she had heard that Rin had gone after a possibly rogue jinchūriki she had taken Ino over to Shikaku's house immediately, he wasn't home but Yoshino was and so she had left Ino in her care. She then went out to find Inoichi and her other daughter. She found her husband no problem, he was at the Hokage's tower helping to coordinate the search, with little luck. She would never forget the look of fear on Inoichi's face when he learned that their daughter had disobeyed him and went after Naruto, it mirrored her own.

All night the shinobi forces of the leaf village searched for Naruto, with she herself looking for Rin. It was as the dawn was rising and people were reporting back to the tower that they finally saw Naruto come rushing towards the tower in distress. The shinobi there were on him instantly but it was Inoichi and the Hokage who had reached him first and when Naruto said that Rin was hurt, she felt like she had died inside. A fear had gripped her like nothing she had ever experienced before, even her experience with the Kumo jinchūriki and the kyuubi attack paled in comparison to the thought of one of her daughters being hurt, possibly dying.

It was later, as they arrived on the scene with the Hokage as well as a squad of medical-nin and Anbu that they found four different Naruto's trying to do first aid on Rin and Iruka and that they learned the whole truth of what had happened that night. About how Mizuki was a traitor, Inoichi later discovering that he was a spy in the service of Orochimaru, and that he had tricked Naruto into stealing the scroll for him. How Iruka had been lured to the area and ambushed and injured, too injured to fight the traitor and how it had been Rin who had faced off against the now deceased man.

The reason that they had so much trouble locating Naruto was because the area was not only very isolated, hidden between official training grounds, but Mizuki had also littered the area with chakra suppression seals to help keep it hidden. It wasn't a rushed job either, he had obviously been planning it for weeks. Iruka had been lead to the place and ambushed by Mizuki who wanted to kill him before he killed Naruto and left with the scroll. However despite Mizuki's efforts to mask the area it had ultimately proved ineffective against Rin's abilities when she began to actively search for her friend.

Her daughter had been in bad shape when they had arrived, she was covered in bruises and cuts, the left side of her face was completely swollen from where she had been kicked as well as her throat where Mizuki had tried to crush it. She also ended up having three cracked ribs along with one of her arms being fractured, but the worst of it all was the injury to her shoulder and all of the blood that was pouring from it. She had looked like a ghost with how pale her skin had become. The Medic-nins had gotten to work immediately. It was close, but they had arrived in time to save her. Rin would make a full recovery and so would Iruka after a couple months of rehabilitation, the wound on his back having nicked his spinal cord but by some miracle it wouldn't leave any permanent damage.

"How is she, any change?" The tired voice of Inoichi asks as he quietly steps into the room, not wanting to disturb a healing Rin or Ino who was currently curled up and sleeping on a chair in the corner. Refusing to leave her twin's side.

Megumi smiles at him and nods, "Yeah, she just woke up for a couple seconds, she was a little disoriented but that's not so surprising."

Relief floods Inoichi's features. He had been sick with worry about Rin as well, but unlike her and Ino, he couldn't wait around and watch over her, he had to get to work immediately. A spy was nothing to take lightly and when one was discovered the security of the entire village had to be checked and rechecked to see what and where it had been compromised. As head of Intelligence, that time consuming job fell to him. She also knew that he was doubly worried because he and Rin had had a bit of a fight before all of this happened.

"I'm glad… if you want to get some rest, I'll watch over her." He offers.

Megumi shakes her head. "I couldn't sleep right now anyway, but you're welcome to stay up with me." She offers holding out her hand to her husband, who takes it in his own.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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When Quinn wakes up she's much more lucid this time around, and also feeling the effects of her fight more thoroughly. Her arm aches and her face and shoulder are throbbing and it hurts a little to breathe. It's not too bad yet, but it was certainly uncomfortable. She looks over and sees her father sitting across from her on a chair and reading a book. It's day time, late in the morning, almost noon if she had to guess, although she couldn't see a clock to know for sure.

"Hi daddy…" she says softly.

His head snaps up at the sound of her voice. He gives her a weak smile and makes his way over to her, resting his hand on the top of her head as he sits on the edge of the bed. "Hey, you're up, how are you feeling sweetheart?" He asks gently.

"I'm… I'm a little sore all over and my shoulder is kind of throbbing but I guess I'm okay."

He reaches over and grabs a little handle with a button on top and places it in her hand that's not in a cast. "Just press the button whenever you need to, it'll give some medicine to help with the pain."

She smiles weakly at him, "Yay, instant high." She jokes as she presses it, the pain and throbbing already starting to vanish. "How is Naruto, is he okay? What about Iruka-sensei?"

"Naruto's fine, he's a little shaken up but he'll be okay. Iruka-sensei was hurt pretty badly, but he'll make a full recovery as well…"

Quinn smiles weakly up at her father, "Good… I'm glad."

He nods his agreement as a tense silence falls between them. Minutes pass without either of them saying a word, neither one of them wanting to bring up what they needed to talk about next. Finally it's Inoichi who speaks. "Rin…" He sighs, "You disobeyed me." He says softly.

"I know." She answers back just as quietly, refusing to meet his gaze.

"You put yourself in incredible danger."

She nods.

"You were hurt, you could have been killed."

"I know… and I'd like to apologize but…" Quinn finally looks at him and she can feel the tears building up in her eyes, "But I can't, because I would do the same thing all over again. My friend was in trouble, I had to save him."

"No you didn't, you could have told me where he was and I could have handled it. If you knew where he was why didn't you come tell me?" He asks her gently. He wasn't angry. They had almost lost her and he just couldn't find it within himself to be angry with her, despite her disobedience and despite the danger she had placed herself in. All he felt was relief that his little girl was going to be okay.

"Because you were afraid of him. Not for him, or what might happen to him, but of him, because he was different… because he's a jinchūriki."

"You know." He says it as a statement rather than a question.

Quinn nods her head.

"Did Mizuki tell you?"

She shakes her head, "No… I've known for a while."

"For how long?"

"Pretty early on after we met, I mean it was kind of hard to miss… it took me a while to learn what it was called and what it actually meant, that information was a little bit harder to find, but I'd known he was different for a long time."

Inoichi closes his eyes for a moment and when he looks at her she can see the very serious look in her father's eyes. "I'm not proud of how I felt, I do like the boy… he's a bundle of positive energy and he has a good heart… but…"

"But what?" Quinn asks meekly. She needs to know why her father had been so afraid of him. She was different too, if he ever found out about her, would he feel that same fear towards her? The thought made her feel sick inside. "Shouldn't that be all that matters, what's in his heart?"

"You will never hear me say a word against Naruto, but you have to understand, the jinchūriki is supposed to be their village's ultimate weapon. Konoha is a little different from the rest of the hidden villages with jinchūriki, we don't rely on and weaponize ours the same way that other villages do. But no matter where they're from Jinchūriki tend to grow up leading very isolated lives full of hatred, malice, and mistrust and as a result they often become mentally unstable and sometimes they lose control and the monster inside of them takes over. Friend or foe, very few people who run into one on the battle field live to tell about it, the demons they have inside of them are powerful enough to take on whole armies… Naruto is a very sweet and kind boy, but he houses a demon inside of him.

A demon that would like nothing more than to escape, and if it ever did or if it ever took control of him, the demon wouldn't care. It wouldn't care if you were Naruto's friend or not, it would just kill you and whoever else was unfortunate enough to be in its path. And that is what I was afraid of, Naruto had just taken a scroll containing forbidden jutsu that were sealed away by the First Hokage, and I know he's a bit of a prankster and can be a bit of a troublemaker, but something that serious was extremely out of character for him. I was afraid that the demon had somehow taken control of the boy and that if you had found him, it wouldn't have been your friend."

"But it wasn't the demon, Mizuki-sen… Mizuki tricked him. I had to go daddy, I had to protect him."

"I'm not saying your heart wasn't in the right place, and it was very brave what you did, going after your friend, but it was also very reckless too."

"It had to be me… I had to find him and protect him… it had to be me…" She trails of quietly, her voice starting to quiver with emotion.

"Why sweetheart, why did it have to be you?" Inoichi asks, becoming aware that there was more to this than his daughter wanting to help her friend.

"Because… if it's not me then… then what's the point to all of this?" Quinn's voice cracks.

"All of what?" He asks her gently.

"This, this whole ninja thing, if it's not me then what's the point of it? I became a ninja so that Ino and those I cared about wouldn't have to be, because long before tonight, when you and mom were telling us about all the adventures you'd gone on, I'd read between the lines and I realized just how dangerous this life was." Quinn is crying fully now.

Inoichi begins to gently pet his daughter's head. "Oh sweetheart-"

"It has to be me… I don't want it to be Ino or Naruto or Sakura… I want them to have safe and normal lives… I hate this, I hate this so much… I'm… I'm a killer, I killed him because I knew he was going to kill Naruto and Iruka-sensei. I don't want to be a ninja but I have to be… it's the only way I can protect them, and- and it sucks, because I was right… If I hadn't done this, I would never have been there and then what would have happened? Naruto could have died if I hadn't been there, he's twelve…"

"My sweet girl," He whispers to her softly, as he helps her to sit up and he gather's his crying daughter into his arms, hugging her closely as she cries her heart out. "Honey, that's not you're responsibility-"

"Yes it is," she interrupts him, "Because they don't get it, they think this is fun and an adventure, but it's not… we're just barely even out of the academy, we haven't even been assigned teams yet, and already… already people are trying to hurt them… Who would ever want this? Why would anyone chose this kind of life? I'm a killer and a murderer, and I feel sick inside and my heart aches, even knowing what he was trying to do I still don't know if I made the right choice. But if I hadn't done it… if I hadn't chosen to do this, hadn't chosen to become a ninja, and if I hadn't killed him then Naruto wouldn't be here now… and this is just the beginning, who'll be next? Ino? Sakura? You or mom, I have to be ninja so that I can protect all of you…"

"So that's why you became a ninja, because you were afraid for those that you love, of not being able to protect them as they entered this world?" It suddenly all made so much more sense to him now. He never could quite figure out what had made Rin change her mind about becoming a ninja. She had never wanted to be one when she was little and then one night she had come to them and had suddenly just changed her mind. It had seemed a little weird to him, but she had been so adamant about it that they had signed her up without issue. From then until now she had been keeping this all bottled up inside of herself, his poor sweet girl.

"Rin, I am so sorry that you felt like this was the only path open to you and I am truly sorry that you didn't think you could come and talk to me or your mother about this."

"I couldn't… everyone here is… that's what this place is, it's a ninja village… and I'm just the freak who can't accept that." Quinn whimpers.

"Rin, you are not a freak, don't you ever think of yourself that way. Ever. And sweetheart I promise you, you aren't the only one who feels this way."

Quinn looks up at her father confused, and he smiles sadly down at her as he wipes away a tear. "I'm not?"

"No, in fact you've hit upon one of the biggest philosophical issues that exists in the shinobi world. Ours is a culture of contrasts. Where our reality and ideals often clash with each other and at times seem irreconcilable. We here in Konoha claim to strive toward peace and yet from a young age we teach our people to deceive and to kill, we talk about how life is precious and yet we dehumanize our enemies. We train ourselves to be perfect, merciless, weapons and yet at the end of the day even the seemingly coldest of shinobi is still only human with hopes and dreams and aspirations. Every good shinobi and kunoichi feels this conflict within themselves, a desire to do anything to protect whatever it is that is important to them and yet a complete revulsion of what that may entail and it is so easy to dismiss all of it as just the world we live in, but life is so much more complicated than that.

There's no easy answer here, I wish there was. Believe me, letting you and Ino go into the academy and train to be ninja is not something that your mother and I did lightly, no parent would. It's a dangerous and often cruel life we live, there have been many nights where I have wondered if I was right to do this, to let you both walk this path, but on the other hand… it's like you said if you hadn't been trained and taken up the path of a ninja, what would have happened to Naruto and Iruka-sensei tonight? In letting you train to become a ninja I have to ask myself, what might happen to you if I let you go through with this and what might happen to you if I don't?"

"Then why… how come it always seems so romanticized when people talk about it?" Quinn asks, this was the most in-depth she had ever talked to one of her parents about philosophical aspect of being a ninja. It made her wish she had brought this up sooner.

"I believe that comes about for a couple of reasons, one, there are things about this life that are good. I've made friendships that will last a lifetime and that will pass on for generations, I've also helped people and saved a lot of lives. It's not all murder and mayhem. There are times when ninja's truly are the heroes they're portrayed to be in the stories. I also think that sometimes it's how we cope, we push the bad memories to the back of our minds when we talk about it and try to remember only the good stuff. And for me personally, I know that when I was telling you and your sister stories when you were little, I kept it sweet and adventurous and fun because… well you were my little girls and I wanted you to keep your innocence for a long as possible. You grow up so fast in this life, too fast at times, and I wanted you to be able to stay kids for as long as was possible. Was I right to do so… I don't know, I did the best I could though and I think that's what you need to remember when you think of the shinobi world. That it's full of people stumbling around just like you and me, trying to find meaning in it all and doing the best that they can."

"I just… I don't want to lose anyone… I can't… I'm not strong enough, I can't do it." Quinn says.

Inoichi sighs and kisses the top of her forehead. "Unfortunately sweetheart, loss is a part of life. Not just shinobi life, but all life. We ninja have access to abilities that make us seem more than human, even god-like at times. It's like if I can walk on water or breathe fire then shouldn't I be able to do something about death as well, but we can't. At the end of the day, despite all of our amazing abilities, we're still only human and we're still bound by the same laws of life and death as everything else. Death and loss are a natural part of life and it hurts and it feels awful but… it also reminds us how precious it is, it can be used as a reminder to maybe walk a different path, one that works towards peace rather than war. Like I said there are no easy answers in our world."

Quinn shakes her head as she leans into her father's embrace, "I don't know what to do, I can't… I can't stand it, I killed a man, someone that I'd known for years… I liked him, I thought he was a good person and I was wrong… and I… I killed him, how can I accept that? But the thing is, no matter how hard I think about it, I don't know what I could have done different."

"There's nothing you could have done differently, you were in an awful situation and you had to make a choice. It was either him or it was you and those you were trying to protect. I wish I could tell you that it will never happen again, that you will never be put into a situation like that again but I'd be lying."

"Could you, just this once, lie to me?" She asks him meekly.

He smiles at her sadly and shakes his head. "No, not about this, I'm so sorry. I would love to be able to lie to you, to tell you that you will always be safe and so will those you care about and that you will never be in a position where you will have to take another life again but, you will, especially if you choose to continue on with this. If you are a ninja, this will happen again, there's no getting around it. You could quit right now, pursue a life of peace and no one would think any less of you, no one would blame you, but…"

"But I can't." She finishes softly, and she couldn't, she couldn't let those that she loved face this life alone, not if there was some way for her to be able to help them. "So what do I do? How do I continue doing this, I want to stop, I want to stop so badly, but I would never forgive myself if I did and something happened to one of you, I'd always wonder, you know? Could I have made a difference, protected you… so how do I keep going?"

"Well first of all, you do what you're doing right now, you talk to me or your mother or someone that you love and trust. You don't go it alone, ninja's always work in teams and that means more than just missions as well. One single person could never withstand the weight that being a shinobi places on you, but a team, a village, a family can. Share the load, listen to and help those who are struggling and when you need help don't be afraid to search it out and accept it. It also means finding your own shinobi way."

"My own shinobi way?"

"Yes, your reason for being a ninja. For me, it's about finding out information to stop conflicts before they can happen. To work towards peace without the use of a weapon if possible. That's why I work in information and intelligence, because if the right person with the right information can be at the right place at the right time and prevent a war, well then that's something worth striving for. For you, well that's for you to decide. It's important though, through all the grit and blood and the violence to have an ideal, a goal to strive towards. Something that you cherish more than your own life."

"I just want you all to be safe and happy."

Inoichi places another kiss to her forehead. "Then it's up to you to decide the best way to reach that goal. And now you have to ask yourself, does that mean you become strong enough to protect everyone, to fight every battle so that those you love don't have to or does it mean that you lift and encourage those around you and help make them strong enough so that they can forge their own safety and happiness. Or does it mean something else entirely to you? Only you can know what protecting those you love means to you."

Inoichi helps Quinn lay back down, "You're not alone sweetheart. You can come to me any time day or night and talk to me about this or anything else that is on your mind. You are my daughter and I love you more than life itself."

"I love you too."

Inoichi and Quinn both look over when they hear a light tapping on the door.

Sakura is standing there looking a little uncertain and holding a flower carefully wrapped in a light green wrapper. "Hi, um… is this a bad time?"

Quinn shakes her head. "No come in."

"Hello Sakura." Inoichi says, stepping aside to let Sakura stand next to her friend.

"Good morning sir." Sakura says bowing to him, she then turns to Quinn. "How are you feeling?"

Quinn smiles at her friend. "I'm doing alright."

"I'm glad, I was really worried about you. Oh, um here, I brought you this." She says handing Quinn the flower.

"Thank you, it's beautiful." Quinn says smiling, recognizing the flower immediately.

"It… um, it's a Gardenia, um, I hope you like it." Sakura says blushing.

Quinn brings it up to her nose and inhales the pleasant scent. "I love it, Gardenia's are my favorite."

"I'll go get something for you to put that in." Inoichi says as he leaves the room to give his daughter and her friend some privacy.

"Thanks daddy."

Once he's gone Sakura asks. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, why?"

"You've been crying." She says softly.

"Oh yeah…" Quinn forces a smile onto her face, feeling a little embarrassed at being caught, "being a ninja was just… a little more intense than I thought it was going to be, that's all."

"Especially because you're trying to protect us all by yourself." Sakura says quietly.

Quinn blushes, "How much did you hear?"

"Enough… you know Rin… I feel," Sakura stops for a second, "We feel, all of us, all of your friends… we feel the same way about you. We want to be able to protect you too, it's why we have all worked so hard, so that we could all be strong for one another… I am so honored that you care about us so much that you would risk everything for us, but we feel the same way about you and it's not right or fair to act like we can't be there for you too. You're the strongest Rin, but… that doesn't make the rest of us weak. We can protect you too."

"I don't think you're weak…" Quinn says quietly, part of the problem was that she knew they were strong and that meant that they would keep pushing themselves, even if retreat was a better option.

"Then make a promise to me, right here, right now, that if you're ever in trouble… you'll come to me and let me help you. That you won't do this whole lone wolf thing ever again. Promise me, please." Sakura's voice is quiet but full of emotion.

"Okay, I promise." She would never allow her friends to fight any battle that she could take on herself but… accepting help, allowing them to help her and helping them grow strong too was important as well. Her family, her friends, they all loved her… well they loved Rin anyway, she needed to make sure that Rin was around for a long time, for them.

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 **xXx—xXx**

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 **Author's Note: So I just realized that I've never really described the character's physically in this story. If you already have an image in your head of how they look stop here, otherwise, this is how I picture them right now.**

 **They aren't all that far off from the anime. Naruto is still in his orange jumpsuit, I know, I know, a lot of the fandom hates it, but I've always liked him in it. Much like Shadow Clone Jutsu, the color orange is just so very Naruto. The only real difference in Naruto's appearance is he has his jacket unzipped instead of zipped up like in the anime. Sakura also is dressed the same, her hair is just pulled back into a ponytail and she wears her forehead protector across her forehead instead of like a head band. Ino looks exactly the same. Quinn/Rin, physically, is identical to Ino, like Ino she wears her hair in a ponytail, but unlike her sister she doesn't have any bangs. Also, unlike Ino, when she's not on duty or training she lets her hair hang long. As for her clothing, it's basically her cheerio's uniform from Glee just without the WMHS emblazoned across it. So red and white. I think the more colorful looks actually fit to a ninja better, I know a lot of people like the camouflage and blacks and greys in Naruto fanfics, but to me, while they'll hide you out in the wild, you will stand out in a crowd.**

 **The whole point of being a ninja is to look harmless, unexceptional. You dress like a "badass," sorry hate that description, and people will keep a wary eye on you. Dress like a normal person, or even Naruto's orange jumpsuit, and people might think it looks ridiculous, but they won't give you a second thought. Anbu uniforms, ninja vests, things of that nature are exceptions of course, and you would obviously dress to the mission. But you can always take off the vest as needed, and I doubt Anbu are doing a lot of interacting with people, so a uniform is okay. But if you're dressed head to toe in "ready for combat, look at me I'm a badass, combat gear," you may as well just wear a big old sign saying "NINJA." If you're out in the wild, just throw on a camouflage poncho or something and your covered, much easier than having to constantly change or maintain a transformation if you're trying to move about a city or town unnoticed.**


	15. Chapter 14

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 14-xXx**

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Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed as he looked over the list of newly graduated genin. He was finalizing the approval of the genin cells as suggested by their academy teachers and assigning them their jōnin sensei. It was a tedious but vital task that require him to go over all the notes he had received from the academy about each cell as well as his own personal knowledge of each shinobi that would potentially be involved, jōnin and genin alike.

Normally he would be doing this with the assistance of the village elders, his former teammates, Koharu and Mitokado, the three of them going over the pros and cons of each cell as well as what jōnin would suit their needs the best. However there was more at stake this time around than usual. He had finally come face to face with a decision he had been debating on heavily for a while now. He'd let his own personal feelings get in the way and had stalled on doing this for as long as possible, but now his time was up and he had to act in the best interests of the village.

The issue he faced came in the form of the recommended genin cell 6. It had been unanimously recommended by all of the involved instructors at the academy that Rin and Ino Yamanaka, as well as Sakura Haruno be placed on a single genin team. The three of them had shown time and time again during their time at the academy that they worked well together. And Hiruzen could see where they were coming from and large part of him was inclined to follow this recommendation.

After all, all three girls filled the top three spots in their graduating class, the first Kunoichi to ever do so. One spot occasionally, and twice before, two kunoichi had filled the top two spots, but never before all three. And they all worked well together too. Under normal circumstances, placing them together as a team would be a no brainer, however and rather unfortunately these weren't normal circumstances. Time was running out and he needed to start putting his plans into motion. For too long he had allowed himself to put off what needed to be done, but now he no longer had any time to waste.

He needed Rin to grow strong, and he needed it to happen as fast as possible. Luckily Rin was a prodigy, she had a natural talent for picking up and learning the shinobi arts. If he had more time to spare then placing her with her sister and her friend would undoubtedly allow her to reach her full potential, but it wouldn't be in time. It was partially why he had started tutoring her once a week, it was essential that she grow as strong as she could and as quickly as possible.

If time wasn't so important then this wouldn't be an issue, her progress under any other circumstances was above and beyond what would be expected of any ninja within his ranks and having her grow with a team would be perfectly acceptable. But this wasn't normal circumstances, he needed her strong and isolated and teaming her up with her friend and sister wouldn't do that.

He already knew what he was going to do with Rin, the problem came down to the other two kunoichi involved. Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno. He had no desire to stunt or challenge their growth. They were both becoming exceptional kunoichi who both had bright futures ahead of them. And he had no doubt that one day they would help guide and protect Konoha's future, hell maybe even lead it one day, and so he needed to find spots for them that would help them continue to grow.

But he couldn't just break cell six up. I mean he could, but he had to justify it, at least to himself. He had to change things around so that everyone had their best chance at success. His first move that he decided on was the removal of the current kunoichi from team seven, a young girl named Ami, and replacing her with Sakura Haruno. Making cell 7 Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and Naruto Uzumaki. They could work well together, if he remembered correctly Sakura and Naruto were even friends so that was a plus, and placing an up and coming kunoichi like Sakura under the tutelage of someone like Kakashi Hatake wouldn't raise any kind of suspicion.

That left him with figuring out what to do with Ino Yamanaka, fortunately for him this one was a little simpler. He switched her with the kunoichi on team 10, placing her with Shikamaru Nara and Chouji Akamichi. Their parents, while not the first time these clans had been teamed together, were certainly the most famous. Recreating the Ino-Shika-Cho combination wouldn't draw the suspicion of anyone either. For that team… he chuckles, he would place his son in charge of them. Three clan heirs placed together under the tutelage of his very own son as they recreate the success of their parents, yes that seemed like the right decision.

All that was left on original team six was Rin, but not for long. He goes to his list of genin and finds an already graduated genin currently without a team and places him in it with the two new graduates. Crossing Rin's name off of the team in the process. The two new girls weren't spectacular but with a little training they would eventually make competent ninja. It takes him a while to decide who to team them up under, just because they didn't look to be anything other than ordinary didn't mean that they didn't deserve the chance to grow either. Ordinary could, after all, become extraordinary if given the chance… hmm, yes that could work. The woman had been bothering him for a while to give her a shot at being jōnin sensei, so why not give her a chance to prove herself here.

"Be careful what you wish for Mitarashi Anko." The Hokage chuckles to himself, a genin cell was a lot of work. It would be hard for her at first, but he was confident that she could rise to the occasion.

Finally after going through and checking and double checking the team and sensei combinations he was satisfied. Yes, each team was going to be given the best opportunity possible to succeed and grow, and he had effectively cut Rin off from the pack. Now it was time to decide who would be training her. He had considered making her his own apprentice, which would not only have the benefit of giving him direct control over her training but it would also keep her close to him.

However his duties as Hokage left him with little time to train her properly. Plus he didn't want to put himself on Inoichi's radar any more than he was about to, the man was too clever and too good at his job at times. Taking even more of an interest in his daughter would draw attention from the man that he just didn't need. Keeping the man focused on Rin and off of him was his best bet.

No, unfortunately he couldn't be the one who trained Rin, at least not any more than he already had been. Fortunately he had a good idea of who it should be and he had specifically asked for them to be the only one guarding him tonight.

"Reveal yourself." He says calmly, and from out of the shadows, appearing from nothing without a sound was one of the village elite. They were currently a captain in the Anbu corps and someone who he knew was on the same level as Might Guy and Kakashi Hatake. The three of them arguably being the strongest active jōnin in the village.

"Lord Hokage." They say with a bow and in a monotone voice.

He slides Rin's file forward. "I have a request to make of you. You may of course refuse." He knew they wouldn't.

"Whatever it is Lord Hokage, I accept. I am yours to command." They say stepping forward and grabbing the file.

"Good, then remove your mask and reclaim the name you gave up in service of your village."

They remove their mask and stand before him. "Lord Hokage?"

Hiruzen nods towards the seat in front of his desk, indicating that they should take a seat. "In that file contains the information of a young Kunoichi who is about to graduate. Her name is Rin Yamanaka."

"The girl you've been tutoring?"

"The very same. She is an immensely talented young woman with a strong desire to protect those she loves. I wish for you to train her, to take her on as an apprentice."

"Me? Lord Hokage, surely there are… better qualified ninja?"

"You are the best and this girl needs the best. She has an important role to play in the future of this village and she needs to be prepared and it needs to happen sooner rather than later. If I had the time I would take her on myself as a full time apprentice. As it is, I don't have the time and quite frankly you are my first choice in a very small list of people I would actually trust with this."

"I… I am honored sir, it's… it's a little sudden but I can certainly go and speak with Inoichi about this-"

"Don't worry about that, I'll speak to Inoichi in my own time. I just need to know if you will do this."

"I've never given much thought to being a sensei." they admit, "Although… helping to build someone up rather than tear them down might be a nice change of pace." They say softly.

"I do not exaggerate when I say that she is a genius. The shinobi arts come to her as easily as breathing. You will find her to be a willing and dedicated student. Though I do warn you, she has no love for the shinobi way of life. Her entire goal is the protection of those important to her. Which is why I must ask you to do something in addition to training her."

"What is it?"

The Third slides over a mission scroll, marked with the symbol S. Their eyes widen in shock, "Lord Hokage?"

"Everything you need to know about what I require of you and Rin Yamanaka is on that scroll. Read it, memorize it, and destroy it. Everything that I know about Rin is in that file you're holding. You would do well to memorize it as well. Her sensor gifts exceed even your own."

"It shall be as you command." They say as they open the scroll and begin to read, wondering to themselves just what the hell they were getting themselves into.

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 **xXx—xXx**

 **s**

 **Author's Note: So I know this chapter is really, really short. Really important content to the overall arching story, but still really short. Originally this chapter and the next were both one large chapter, and I originally split them up because I wanted to expand on some things and I felt like the two halves didn't go well together anyway. Unfortunately I never really got around to typing up what it was that I wanted to go into when I first split the two chapters up. So to make it up to you for just how short this chapter is and the next one as well, I'll post chapter 15 tomorrow.**


	16. Chapter 15

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto. And here is chapter 15 early, just as promised, enjoy :)**

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 **xXx-Chapter 15-xXx**

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"Hey, can we talk?" Quinn asks quietly as she stands outside of her and her sister's room. She had been forced to stay two more nights in the hospital and today was the day she was finally allowed to come home. During her stay both Sakura and the Hokage had dropped by to visit her, as well as the constant presence of one of her parents, and even Iruka-sensei had asked to see her so that he could thank her, however both Ino and Naruto had been avoiding her lately and she was starting to worry about them. Ino had only stopped by to visit her while she was in the hospital once and it had only been for a couple of tense and awkward minutes. She hadn't seen Naruto at all since the fight.

"Sure, what's up?" Ino chirps with a forced happiness.

Quinn goes and takes a seat on her bed and looks up at her sister who is moving around the room, cleaning and tidying up, fidgeting around and basically doing everything in her power to not focus on her.

"Ino, please, this important."

Ino gives her a look and rolls her eyes, a fake smile in place. "I'm listening." She says as she goes back to organizing her dresser.

Quinn sighs, "Ino, are you mad at me?"

Ino's back tenses instantly. "No."

"Are you sure, I mean I could understand if you were." Quinn says softly.

Ino shakes her head, refusing to look at her. "I'm not mad at you." She says, her voice tight.

"Then how come you've been avoiding me?" Quinn asks gently.

Ino scoffs, "I haven't been avoiding you silly." She says, still refusing to really turn around and look at her. "I've just… I haven't been avoiding you. Why would I, and besides I'm here right now, we're talking aren't we?"

"Ino. You can tell me the truth." Quinn says, "It's okay if you have been, I know I probably scared you and I just want to know what I can do to make things right between us."

Ino turns and stares at her, she looks so torn up right now. Her features twisted in anguish. "What you can do to make this right? This is my fault!" She says before she starts to cry.

Quinn is completely dumbfounded. She stands up from her spot on the bed and goes over to her sister. "What do you mean this is your fault, what's your fault?" She asks as she wraps her good arm around her sister and pulls her into a hug, her other arm was currently resting in its sling.

Ino latches onto her and begins to cry in earnest. "You, you getting hurt, it's my fault… you went off on your own after Naruto and I didn't try to stop you or go after you. If I had been there, if I had been a good older sister and had been there, then you wouldn't have been hurt…"

"Oh Ino, no, this wasn't your fault."

"Yes it is! We're sisters, we're supposed to protect and look out for each other, and when you went after Naruto, who is supposed to be my friend too, I didn't go with you! I just went and told mom and… and then the next thing I know I'm at the hospital looking at you and… and you look so… so beaten up and pale… and you had to fight that traitor on your own and… I'm your sister… I'm the oldest… I'm supposed to protect you and I wasn't there… and if I had been then maybe you wouldn't have gotten hurt! I'm sorry, I am so, so sorry…" Ino cries into Quinn's shoulder.

Quinn rubs soothing circles up and down Ino's back as she continues to cry. "Ino, this wasn't your fault. Not in the least little bit. This is completely on that bastard Mizuki and… and it's a little on me. I… I was so determined that it had to be me that saved him that, well, I was reckless. I didn't know the whole situation and I put not only myself in danger, but Iruka and Naruto as well. I should have told daddy what I knew but I was angry at him. You were right not to follow after me and you were right to go and tell mom what I had done."

Ino shakes her head. "I should have gone after you." She chokes out.

"I'm sorry, I scared you and made you sad and that's the last thing that I would ever want to do. Please, please, I beg you, don't feel any guilt about what happened. You did absolutely nothing wrong, you didn't fail me, and you're a fantastic sister. You do look after me, but you know what, I look after you too. We're twins, it's what we do." Quinn says with a smile.

"I should have been there."

"We- We're entering a dangerous world and it hit us all just a little sooner than we thought. Something that we're both going to have to learn how to accept is that there will be times when we can't be there for the other."

Ino shakes her head again. "No, I don't accept that, I refuse, it's stupid."

Quinn smiles sadly. "I think it's stupid too."

"Then don't say it," Ino growls angrily, the effect lost to a hiccup as she continues to cry. Though her tears are starting to subside. "We never have to accept that, we should always look after and protect each other, always. I will never accept that I can't be there for you so don't you dare do it."

"I'm sorry."

"You should be… no more going off on your own, no more going where I can't be there to protect you okay?" Ino says softly.

"Okay."

"Promise me."

"I promise." Quinn says resting her head on top of Ino's.

"Good, and I promise… I promise that you'll never have to fight alone again, that I won't let you go off on your own, okay, I promise."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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After Ino had calmed down and they had spent some time together, Quinn decided it was time to pay Naruto a visit. She was currently standing outside his apartment door waiting for him to answer. She had already knocked once but he still hadn't come to the door so she does so again, this time harder.

*POUND

*POUND

*POUND

"Naruto, I know you're there so hurry up and answer the door." She shouts. Not really angry or annoyed, just wanting him to hurry. She could sense the guilt radiating off of him and she was determined to nip this thing in the bud. Her desire to protect her friends on her own had backfired spectacularly and now it was time to fix it.

When Naruto finally opens the door he looks awful, like he hadn't slept in days and that he had been crying. "Rin…?" He asks meekly.

She smiles at him warmly before flicking him on the forehead. She could be sweet and sincere with Ino and Sakura, but Naruto was a bit of a hard head and would need a bit of a tough love approach.

"Ow!" He yelps, more startled than anything, stepping back as she comes inside.

"You jerk, I'm in the hospital for four days and my best friend doesn't visit me once, what the hell?" She asks, scowling with her hand on her hip.

"I- uh, well um…"

Her features soften. "I missed you and I was worried about you. I would have really loved to have seen you, the hospital was so boring."

Naruto doesn't say anything, staring intently at the floor and refusing to meet her gaze. He mumbles something quietly.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you." Quinn says, going over and putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I said it was my fault, you were hurt because of me." He says softly.

"No, I was hurt because of Mizuki and my own pigheadedness." She answers.

Naruto shakes his head, "It was me, I was so stupid and I let Mizuki trick me and then when you fought him I- I froze… I couldn't do anything… I just stood there like- like…"

"Like a good support team is supposed to. You waited for the right moment to strike and you saved my life." Quinn says with a comforting smile. She knew Naruto had been scared, and why shouldn't he have been, he was only twelve years old and he was watching two people try to kill each other, he had every right to be scared.

Naruto refuses to look at her, "No, I stood there like a coward."

Quinn sighs, "Naruto… it was your first exposure to combat, of course you got scared, it's only natural."

"You weren't scared…" He mumbles.

Quinn chuckles lightly, "You're right, I wasn't scared…"

Naruto's shoulders slump.

"I was terrified, scared doesn't even begin to cover how I felt." She answers him.

Naruto looks at her, surprised. "But… huh? You were scared?" He asks, not quite believing it. Rin had jumped right into action without any hesitation. She had been incredible, there was no way she could have been scared.

"Easily one of the scariest moments of my entire life." Quinn answers him.

"But you were so fast, you didn't hesitate or anything, you just went right in and started to fight! How can you say that you were scared!?"

"Because…" Quinn hesitates, knowing this would hurt the boy's pride. "Because my best friend was in danger and I didn't know if I could protect him."

"Me? You were scared for me?"

"Of course, Naruto…" Quinn pauses for a second. "I don't think you understand what you've done for me. I was so focused on getting as strong as I could, I was pushing away the people who mattered most to me, Ino, my parents, I was isolating myself from everyone and then…"

Quinn smiles warmly at him. "And then you came over because you thought I looked bored and you offered to play with me and be my friend. Now, Ino and I are closer than ever, and I also have you and Sakura. I have the greatest friends in the world and it was because of you, helping me realize that I needed to open up. You were in danger Naruto, and despite all the work I had put into my training it almost wasn't enough to save you, you better believe that I was scared."

"I should have acted sooner…" Naruto growls quietly, more to himself.

Quinn shrugs, "Maybe, maybe not. You entering the fight sooner may well have ended it sooner, or it was just as likely to have killed us both, we'll never know. What I do know is that when he was about to kill me you stepped up and saved my life. You didn't freeze, you didn't hesitate, you knocked him on his ass, he died and then you got us help."

Naruto frowns, "He was hurting you… I couldn't… it was bad enough I waited as long as I did, I couldn't just stand there any longer… I had to protect you."

"Exactly, you were scared, but when the moment came you acted. You saved me."

"Maybe…"

"No maybe about it, I'm here and I'm fine and so are you. I don't think we can ask for much more than that, can we?"

"No, I guess not. I get it now though…" Naruto says softly.

"Get what?"

"What you meant when you said that being a ninja was scary. I mean… I knew it already, we'd talked enough that I got it, but… that night, I really got it."

"Naruto…"

"I'm so sorry Rin, you needed me to be strong and I wasn't. You can say I did fine and you can make up all of the excuses you want for me but the truth is, I messed up and I froze and you got hurt because of it. But I promise you Rin, I promise, you won't ever have to fight alone again. I promise. I won't freeze, I won't hesitate and I'll get strong. Stronger than even you or Mizuki or even the old man."

"And then you'll be Hokage right?" Quinn says with a smile.

"Maybe, maybe not, that doesn't matter to me though… not anymore." Naruto says softly, almost more to himself than to her and Quinn can't recall a time she's ever seen Naruto this serious before. "When I get strong enough, I'll be able to protect you and then I'll be able to create a world where you don't have to be a ninja and that you and everyone can live in peace. That's my promise to you, I'll create a world where you don't ever have to fight again."

"Naruto I-"

"I promise Rin. Please believe me."

Quinn is silent for a few moments as she contemplates what Naruto has just said. That is so much pressure for someone to take on, it wouldn't be fair to accept a promise like that. Especially one that she knew could never be fulfilled. Naruto had the biggest heart of anyone she had ever met and accepting a promise like that was all but unconscionable. On the other hand, Naruto needed her to. He needed her to believe in him, he needed her to accept his promise and to forgive him. It would be the only way he could accept what happened.

Quinn goes up to Naruto, his eyes watching her nervously. She wraps him in a hug and she can feel him stiffen for a moment before relaxing and hugging her back. "Alright Naruto, I believe you and if anyone can do it I know that it's you."

"I will, believe it." He says quietly.

A couple of seconds pass before Quinn pulls away. "What else is it Naruto, you're still upset."

Naruto gives her a look. "You know that ability of yours is a real pain in the ass sometimes."

Quinn giggles and Naruto chuckles as well. "So I've been told. Do you want to tell me what else is wrong?"

Naruto is quiet for a moment. "You knew I was a demon this whole time." He says quietly.

"You're not a demon, you're a jinchūriki, you contain a demon, but you aren't one yourself, big difference."

"Still… you knew."

"I did."

"And you never said anything…"

Quinn can't help the laughter that bubbles up from hearing him say that. "I'm sorry but how exactly was I supposed to bring _that_ up. Hey Naruto, want to go get some Ramen and tell me about the giant demon fox that lives in your belly? What's that like by the way, do you hear voices in your head, do you eat for two, does it tickle?"

Naruto chuckles. "Yeah… I guess there isn't a good way to bring it up is there?"

"None that I could think of and besides, it never mattered to me. You're still Naruto, you're still my best friend."

"It mattered to others though… actually finding out about it explained a lot, why some people were so cold, the looks I would get, why some people… people I'd never even met seemed to just hate me. Finding out made a lot of things click into place and I can't help think that maybe…" Naruto trails off uncertainly.

"Maybe what?"

"Do you think that's why I don't have parents… because they didn't want someone like me around?" Naruto's voice quivers towards the end of the question and it breaks Quinn's heart.

"Not a chance." Quinn says absolutely, leaving no room for argument. "I promise you, if your parents could be here they would be. There's no doubt of that in my mind."

Naruto smiles weakly at her. "You can't know that."

"Yes. I can."

"But how, how can you know that for sure?"

Because there was nothing that could ever make her not love Beth. "I just do. You just have to trust me on this. If your parents were able to be here right now they would be, I know that with all of my heart."

Naruto turns away from her as he starts rub his eyes, his shoulders shaking. "I'm not crying…" He says, his voice cracking. "I'm not."

Quinn does the only thing she can think to do. She goes up behind him and holds him tightly. "I know." She says softly.


	17. Chapter 16

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 16-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn groans as she rolls out of bed, looking at the clock it was a quarter to three in the morning, and her shoulder was throbbing. She reaches over to her nightstand and grabs the bottle of pain meds she had been given and quickly pops one. Luckily the pills acted fairly quickly and so hopefully the aches and pains would be gone soon.

Today was the day that she and the others in her class would be assigned to their genin teams. They had graduated last Monday and then were given one week off as a kind of break, all of which Quinn had spent recovering, but today, finally, their ninja careers would begin in full. Technically she wasn't cleared for duty yet. According to the doctors she should be fully recovered by the end of the week, and after a session with a therapist to determine her mental status which would take place this Wednesday, then she would finally be cleared for active duty.

Not every fight that winds up in a death warrants a visit to a shrink. After all, they had been conditioned from very early on to accept that death was just a part of their profession. However, the first kill was different. Quinn was actually a little surprised at how seriously the village took a shinobi's first kill.

Quinn had tried to convince her father to give her a pass, she felt that she'd already talked everything over with him and figured that was good enough. No she wasn't happy that it had come to that, but recognized that given her situation it had been necessary. She wasn't about to break down into a useless bundle of nerves nor was she about to go kill crazy down main street Konoha. She was okay, not great, but okay. She was dealing… she hoped.

Her father however had been firm that she should go.

" _A person's first kill is more traumatic than you realize, no matter the circumstances involved a person's life has just been ended. That is a lot to deal with on your own, a lot of mental stress. An impartial evaluation is necessary, not only for your own health and safety, but the safety of those you serve with."_

" _But I'm fine, I'm not crazy." Quinn knew she was whining and sounded a little petulant but she really didn't want to hash out what happened again, this time with some random person she didn't even know._

 _Her father places his hands on her shoulders and looks her directly in the eyes. "Sweetheart… you are handling this so very well. You haven't been afflicted by bloodlust and while you aren't happy with what you had to do, you've accepted it, and you aren't likely to freeze on a mission if confronted with a life or death situation again. However, you owe it to yourself to make sure that everything is really okay. Nobody thinks you're crazy, but even if it were up to me and I could get you out of this, I wouldn't._

 _Rin, you deserve every advantage, every bit of help that you can get, whether you feel you need it or not. Speaking with the psychologist, even if it's just so you can say you have professional clearance saying you're okay, can only help you. It's a onetime thing, you aren't being signed up for multiple sessions, but after your first kill, the village believes, and so do I for that matter, that every Shinobi needs to be evaluated."_

He was right of course, if it were someone else going through this then she would be all for them seeing a therapist, just to make sure that they were okay. She just wasn't excited that this was happening to her. On the plus side, because she had to look for the good that came from everything that had happened if only for her own sanity, they had ousted a spy who was working for a known traitor and as a result she and Naruto were both getting a successful B-Rank mission added to their records along with the appropriate pay.

As Quinn quietly makes her way through the house she is surprised to find that her mother is awake. She is sitting on the living room couch and staring at an old photograph, lost in thought, and she doesn't seem to have even noticed that Quinn is there. Her mother's emotions are a rollercoaster right now, a strange and shifting combination of melancholy, pain, and affection.

"Mom?" Quinn asks quietly, "Are you okay?"

Her mother looks up at her, "Rin, sweetheart, what are you doing up?"

"I couldn't sleep, my shoulder was bothering me…"

"Are you alright? Do you need me to get you anything?" Megumi asks, concern filling her voice.

"I'm fine, I've already taken a pain pill. But what about you, what are you doing up?" Quinn asks as she takes a seat next to her mother.

"I couldn't sleep either. I couldn't stop thinking about my old genin team, here's a picture of us." Megumi says as she hands Quinn the photo.

Quinn smiles as she examines the photo. Her mother was off to the right of the picture holding up a peace sign and grinning from ear to ear. To her left and in the middle was a blue haired girl who seemed to be all but doubled over with laughter and to the far left on the photo was a boy with a shaved head, holding up a thumbs up, smiling as well. Behind them was an older guy with black hair, but even he was no older than twenty-five, twenty-six at Quinn's estimate, He was looking at the camera and smiling as well.

Quinn gives a light laugh, "I can't believe that's you, you were so little." Her mother had to have been her physical age when the picture was taken, maybe even a little younger.

"Thank you for not saying young." Megumi chuckles, as does Quinn. "That's Nami," Megumi says, pointing to the girl in the middle, "She had such a wonderful sense of humor and she was so full of life. She loved to laugh and make other people laugh… actually she was quite a bit like Naruto." Megumi says fondly.

Quinn nods her head and smiles, encouraging her mom to continue. "And that's Kenta." Megumi says pointing to the kid with the shaved head. "Looking back he… he really was such a dork," Megumi laughs. "But at the time I had a huge crush on him."

"Really? Him?"

"Oh yes, I thought he was very dashing."

"And the guy in the background?"

"That's Hiroshi-sensei, I couldn't have asked for a better teacher. He was so kind and patient with us, we really were a bunch of brats but he loved us anyway… gods, I forgot how young we were, it seems like a lifetime ago… And today, you and your sister are going to be assigned to your own teams…" Megumi's voice trails off.

"Mom, are you okay?"

"You and Ino have worked so hard to reach this point and I am so proud of you both but right now… all I can think about is how much I wish you hadn't. That maybe I could have said or done something different and you both would have chosen a different life. And the thing is, I thought that this was just life how life was. You grow up, you go to the academy, and you become a ninja. That's how it was for me and your father, and that's how it was for our parents, it just seemed so simple… but now, the thought of either of you out there scares me more than I ever thought."

"Mom…" Quinn says softly, hating that her mother was hurting.

"I thought I could handle this and I thought everything would be okay, that you and Ino would always be okay, but then you got hurt and… I really can't lose either of you… I know better than anyone what can happen out there and I have to ask myself… what kind of mother am I to have let you go into this life?"

"The best." Quinn says. She had a lot of issues about being a ninja, a lot of moral quandaries that she was still trying to reconcile with how things were in her old world and how things were in this world, but there was absolutely one thing that she was sure of. When she came into this world she had gotten the best parents she could have ever asked for.

In her old world, she and her mother had been in the process of reconciling and things were getting better but in this world it was different. Not once had she ever wondered if her parents here loved her. She may have questioned, and still to this day question, whether or not she was worthy of that love. But she knew it was there. Even more so than the ninjutsu and superhuman feats, that fact was something that she was still trying to get used to.

"You want to know what kind of mother you are… the very best." Quinn says her voice cracking as she thinks of everything that the woman she was sitting next to has done for her. "I've never in my entire life ever had to wonder if you love me or not. You have always done everything in your power to care for us."

"Of course I love you Rin, I'm your mother…" Megumi gives a tired sigh, "I'm so sorry sweetheart, I shouldn't be… I shouldn't be burdening you with my troubles, gods, you already have so much to deal with and you're still healing and-"

"Mom, please. It's okay, really. For the past twelve years you've taken such wonderful care of me, it's nice to know that I can help you even if it's only a little. If you need someone to listen to you then please, talk to me."

Megumi is quiet for a moment, "I'm scared for you." She says so softly that Quinn almost didn't catch it. "I was so excited when you decided to go to the academy that I didn't even stop to consider all the danger that doing so would eventually place you in. I just remembered all of the good times that I had and ignored the consequences and now… now you and your sister are taking your first steps into this violent world and I don't know how to protect you. I mean you've already experienced first hand just how rough the life of a shinobi can be… how can I protect you from that and worse still, how can I accept that I let you get into that position in the first place."

Quinn is silent for a moment as she contemplates what to say, "It's funny… what happened, the danger, it's what I've been terrified would happen to Ino, Naruto, and Sakura right from the beginning. Heck, it did happen to Naruto, and honestly, growing up I would have given anything to not be a ninja but now that all of this has happened, and now that it's really about to happen… I mean we're getting our teams today, I can't imagine it any other way. It's like I said that night when I first decided to become a ninja, I don't want to, but I feel like I have to and I feel that way now more than ever. I mean, it's like you said, I've experienced just how dangerous this life is first hand, but… I've also seen first-hand the difference that I can make. I can help people, I can save my friends… I can make a difference… for the first time ever… I can matter."

Megumi gently cups her daughter's face in her hands, "My Rin, you've always mattered. Don't you ever think for even one moment otherwise. The day you were born, holding you and your sister in our arms, it was the happiest day of mine and your father's life."

Quinn doesn't say anything to that, because how could she explain that she had spent 18 years of her life in that other world not mattering to anyone, but here it was different. Here there were people who she was important to. Fighting for them, facing dangers for them, the struggle to find her own shinobi way, the effort and desire to protect them all was a small, almost insignificant price to pay for all that they gave her.

"Rin, did I… did I ever do anything to ever pressure you into making this choice? Did I ever do anything to force you onto this path?"

Quinn shakes her head. "No, I've put a lot of thought into becoming a ninja and I've always found chakra fascinating, but you know, I've never actually wanted to be a ninja. It's just something I felt I needed to do. It helped though, it made it easier for me to make the choice knowing that no matter what I chose I would have your support. I never felt forced or compelled by you or daddy to ever become a ninja. It's like I said to daddy, I became a ninja to protect Ino and everyone that I care about. It was my decision and I own it, you never pressured me, ever."

"I let you down though, I should have spoken to you more about this in depth, a lot more than I did, and I am so sorry about that."

"You have never let me down. You really are the best mom in the world, and we're talking about it now, right? Even if we had talked like this before it wouldn't have changed my decision… I'm just… I don't know, I've never felt like you've let me down."

Megumi leans over and pulls Quinn into a hug which she returns. She then places a kiss to Quinn's forehead. "Thank you."

"Do you want to tell me more about your old team? I mean, I don't remember meeting any of them…"

Megumi shakes her head, looking very sad. "No I shouldn't, today is supposed to be a big day for you and their story… it's not a happy one."

"Please… it's obviously on your mind and well, you obviously really cared a lot about them. You don't have to share any of the sad stuff, maybe just share all of the good things you remember, because then, if you want, I can share their memory with you."

Megumi places another kiss to her daughter's forehead and Quinn snuggles into her mother's embrace. Quinn didn't care how old she seemed or how old she really was, she would never get tired of being held by a parent who loved her. "You really are growing up to be a wonderful young lady, you know that. If you're sure that you want to listen then I would love to share some of my memories with you."

Quinn nods her head, ready and eager to learn more about her mother. She'd always felt close to her, but now it felt like something had changed between them and for the better. Like their relationship was about to evolve into that next level, where they weren't just mother and daughter, but friends as well.

"Alright, let me think… I first met Kenta and Nami when-"

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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"A-ha!" Quinn cheers as her target hits its mark. Ino rolls her eyes and shakes her head at her while Sakura giggles, both of them looking on amused at Naruto and Rin's antics. Naruto lets out a grumble as he takes his turn, aiming carefully. She and Naruto were flicking tiny paper shuriken at each other as they waited for whoever was going to cover the class for today to come and announce their genin team assignments.

If Quinn had to give a guess it would probably be Suzumi-sensei, but it could be any one of a dozen or more chūnin or even a jōnin. Not that it ultimately mattered, but you were trained to think about different variables and so you almost couldn't help but wonder about it. She was actually kind of curious if any of their classmates knew why both Iruka-sensei and Mizuki were missing. Mizuki was dead, obviously, and Iruka was getting ready to start his physical therapy today.

Quinn is brought out of her musings when a paper shuriken hits her forehead and Naruto gives a boisterous laugh. "Alright! I got you! Ha ha ha! You are no match for my mad ninja skills!"

Quinn arches a brow at him and Naruto stops laughing for a moment and gulps nervously. Quinn then smirks at him before she quickly lines up her last five remaining paper shuriken and almost faster than you could blink flicks them all at him. Each one smacking him in the forehead right where the previous one had hit.

Naruto's shoulders sag for a moment before he starts to laugh and Quinn joins him. "Hey no fair, you're supposed to be injured remember?"

"Ah… my young grasshopper… you still have much to learn… about the way of…. Ninja."

"Grass… hopper…?" Naruto quirks his head at her like she's kind of crazy.

Ino nudges her, "You goof." And Quinn just sticks her tongue out at her in response.

It was really good to see Rin in such good spirits, Sakura decided. She had been worried about how her friend was doing and had made it a point to visit her as often as possible, and it was nice to see that she was doing better. Rin had always been serious and very driven and she looked like she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders at times. Now however… well the weight was still there, but it was like Rin had learned how to shoulder it better.

It was one of the things that had first drawn Sakura to her, Rin always seemed so strong. And now that she knew what motivated Rin to work so hard was that she was trying to be strong enough to protect them all, it only made Sakura love her even more. Of course, back in the hospital Sakura had to set her straight, that she wasn't some damsel that needed saving, that she could protect Rin too, but the thought that she was someone who mattered so much to Rin that she would carry that kind of burden made Sakura's heart sore.

"Careful Sakura, you're staring." Ino whispers to her quietly and Sakura quickly look away from Rin who is currently giggling about something with Naruto.

"Uh… I… um…"

"I don't know why you won't just tell her how you feel, with her ability she probably already knows anyway."

"That's just it, if she does know then that means she either, one, feels the same way and is just giving me time or two, she doesn't feel the same way and she's trying not to hurt my feelings… or worst case scenario, she knows and she just doesn't care. And no matter which it is... I'm kind of afraid to find out the answer."

"You don't really believe that Rin wouldn't care do you?"

Sakura shakes her head, "No, of course not, but I still can't help but worry about it… besides, my feelings might be irrelevant, she might not even like girls." Sakura says softly.

"She does."

Sakura's eyes snap onto Ino, this was huge news, why was she just hearing this now?! "Are you sure!? How do you know?"

Ino shrugs her shoulders, "I asked her, she says she's bi, but that she does have a preference towards girls. I wanted to know what kind of shot my best friend had." She says with a grin.

"Really she's… but… I, I'm still not… what do I do?"

"Hey, listen," Ino says gently, "you'll never know if you don't say anything. Besides, how could she say no to you? You're one of the coolest people I know plus you're totally hot, and you already know she likes you as a friend, it's entirely possible that there's more to it than that. She'd have to be crazy to turn you down." Ino says encouragingly. Even though she'd known about it for a while now it was still a little weird for her to think about, that her best friend was crushing on her _twin_ sister.

She had been a little worried when she first found out about Sakura's crush on Rin, that it might have extended to her as well, after all she and Rin were physically identical and she and Sakura were really close too, it would have been awkward if Sakura were crushing on her too. Luckily that wasn't the case, because as much as she liked Sakura she couldn't return those kinds of feelings. Rin however, was a different story entirely and in Ino's opinion Sakura had a real shot.

"I just… I'm not ready yet."

"Alright, have it your way. But Rin's not going to be single forever you know, so you'd better do something soon otherwise someone else might just swoop in. I really like the idea of you two together and I'm rooting for you Sakura, but Rin is my sister and if someone else comes along and captures her heart and they're a good person, I'm going to support her. So don't take too long, okay." Ino doesn't say anything else, just letting that thought hang in the air.

Sakura slumps into her seat, completely depressed. Ino was right though, while Rin had never shown any romantic interest in anyone before, they were all getting to that age where it would start happening. Heck, Ino was already fending off her fair share of admirers, and even she had been asked out a couple of times. It was really was only a matter of time before someone came along and tried to sweep Rin off of her feet. Still, Sakura just wasn't ready to say anything yet and until she was she just had to hold onto the hope that no one was Rin's type and that when Rin was finally swept off of her feet she was the one doing it.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Quinn wasn't the least bit surprised when she turned out to be right and it was Suzumi-sensei that was informing them of their genin assignments. There was a little bit of curiosity that spread through most of the class at her presence, especially since the only explanation she gave was that both Iruka-sensei and Mizuki were currently indisposed and that was it. However the curiosity soon gave way to excitement as Suzumi-sensei began to read off their teams.

Quinn found herself growing more and more excited as well, because with each passing team neither herself nor her sister and friends had been named increasing the chance that they would be assigned together. Best case scenario was splitting them in half, two and two to a team. Quinn would love it if all of them could be together, it would certainly help to ease her nerves about all of this, but if she and Ino were teamed together and then Naruto and Sakura, or her and Sakura and Ino or Naruto, or some combination of that then that wouldn't be too bad.

Worst case was none of them were assigned together. She knew her sister and her friends were capable but she couldn't help but worry about them and she would feel a lot better if they were teamed up in some way. At least then she knew that there would always be someone to watch their back. If none of them were assigned together then all of her friends were facing the unknown, alone. Almost as bad, at least in Quinn's opinion was if three of them were assigned together and one of them was left out.

She could live with it as long as Ino, Sakura, and Naruto were teamed up. Then they could all look after each other, however if she wasn't the one separated from the group then that left one of them all alone and without their friends to back them up. And yes, genin teams were supposed to grow close, and they usually did if her mom's team and her father's team were any indication. But none of those people were her, she didn't know them and she didn't trust them. At least not with the lives of her friends and her sister.

However with each passing name and as each new team was assigned the odds were getting better and better for them to be teamed up together. The first stroke of luck came as Quinn heard Suzume-sensei call out team seven.

"Haruno, Sakura…"

All four friends perk up, listening intently.

"Uzumaki, Naruto…"

This gets a loud cheer from Naruto and a happy giggle from Sakura. Naruto and Sakura exchange a look and then bump fists, both of them quite pleased by the news. The last name called out is, "Uchiha, Sasuke."

Naruto's shoulders slump and he scowls over at Sasuke. He pretty much couldn't stand Sasuke and the feeling was quite mutual. But the fact that he was also teamed up with Sakura meant it didn't get to him too much. Sakura didn't seem to mind the team up either, though she was feeling a little apprehensive about Sasuke. Quinn personally felt a little sorry for Sakura because there was a good chance that she would be doing quite a bit of refereeing between the two boys.

Sasuke's feelings were mixed as well. On the one hand, he was super pissed to be on the same team as Naruto… yeah, a lot of refereeing on Sakura's part, but he also seemed to be fairly okay with being placed on Sakura's team, though he didn't show it. He was also quite jealous of Sakura considering she was one of the three students, counting herself and Ino who had knocked him from his spot at the top of the class.

Another strong feeling coming from the naming of this team was from Hinata Hyuga. The poor girl had a massive crush on Naruto and the only person in the world who didn't seem to know was Naruto. Hinata was a shy girl, Naruto had described her as weird and gloomy, for which Quinn had cuffed him upside the head and told him to be nice. She was feeling quite devastated right now that she wasn't on Naruto's team and very annoyed that Sakura was.

Hinata was always polite, and a little twitchy in Quinn's honest opinion, but Quinn couldn't recall a time she'd ever seen the girl act out or even raise her voice. If Quinn couldn't sense the emotions of others, Hinata would appear quite calm. However she could and Quinn was well aware of the fact that Hinata was very jealous of Sakura right now.

Quinn gives the girl a little wave and a smile when their eyes meet, but Hinata quickly turns away and not even a minute later Hinata is named to team 8 along with the class clown, and ass hole in Quinn's opinion, Kiba Inuzuka and a quiet kid named Shino who was ranked fifth in their class. She knew it was harsh and she tried really hard to remember that these were all kids, only eleven to thirteen years old, but Kiba stomped on her very last nerve and so Quinn was feeling quite relieved to not be on the same team as him.

As Quinn did a quick glance around the room she realized something, there were only seven people unassigned to a team left. Someone wasn't going to be put into a team with their classmates and Quinn had a horrible sinking sensation of who going to be left out. Team nine is named, and neither she nor Ino are called. The final four students are herself, Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji. Chouji didn't seem to have noticed yet, but the appraising look that Shikamaru is giving her and Ino and the nervous glance that Ino is giving her lets Quinn know that they've both noticed the lack of people as well.

"Team ten will consist of Akimichi, Chouji. Nara, Shikamaru. And Yamanaka, Ino."

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 **xXx—xXx**

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 **Author's Note: That's it for this chapter, fallout from team selections will be next chapter as well as a real introduction to a couple of familiar Naruto characters. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed.**


	18. Chapter 17

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Glee. Also, before we begin I would just like to take a second and thank everyone who has read, liked, followed, favorited, and especially reviewed this story. It's an odd little concept and crossover I know, and I really appreciate the positive response this story has received. So thank you, sincerely, it makes me really happy that there are other people out there who are enjoying this.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 17-xXx**

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"Team ten will consist of Akimichi, Chouji. Nara, Shikamaru. And Yamanaka, Ino."

Quinn breathes a sigh of relief even as Ino, Naruto, and Sakura's concern spikes. The last two having both just realized that she hadn't been placed on a team. To Quinn it made sense that Ino would be placed with Chouji and Shikamaru. Ino, after all, was learning the Yamanaka clan techniques and was becoming more and more proficient with them every day. It seemed that they had decided to try and recreate the success of the Ino-Shika-Chou trio. It wasn't a perfect solution but Quinn could breathe easier knowing that a part of what made that combo so successful was that the Nara and Akimichi trained to protect the Yamanaka of the trio. It was just how part of that particular configuration worked.

If she couldn't be on the team to protect Ino at least Ino would be on a team with a history of success. It wasn't perfect but things worked out about as well as they could as far as Quinn was concerned. Ino had Shikamaru and Chouji to look out for her, it was just built into how the Ino-Shika-Chou style worked and Naruto and Sakura were both on the same team and could look out for each other.

Ino, however, was not happy. "Suzumi-sensei! What the hell!? What about Rin, where is her assignment!?" Rin may be at the top of the class, but she was still Ino's baby sister and after her fight with Mizuki, Ino's protective instincts over her sister were in overdrive. Ino after all was older by three whole minutes, who was supposed to look after Rin if she couldn't?

"Obviously Suzumi-sensei read the list wrong because there is no way in hell Sasuke is supposed to be on the same team as me and Sakura instead of Rin." Naruto shouts.

"Shut up, idiot."

"Bastard!"

"Loser."

"Naruto… Sasuke…" Sakura rubs her forehead trying to preempt a headache and Quinn gives her a sympathetic look as Sakura realizes the role that she's going to have on the team.

Referee.

Ino however ignores the exchange and focuses all of her fury on the woman who read out their teams, as if it was Suzumi-sensei who had personally split her from her sister. "Well!"

"Ino, it's fine, really." Quinn says soothingly, touched and a little amused by her sister's indignation.

"It's not fine, everyone here knows you're the best in class and now you're not even being placed on a team!"

"Miss Yamanaka, of course Rin has been given an assignment." If any other student had given an outburst like that she would have torn them a new one, however Suzumi had a soft spot for Ino, as Ino Yamanaka was her favorite student and one of the best in the more subtle shinobi arts to pass through the academy in quite some time. She wasn't as combat oriented as her sister, but Ino had more than earned her place as second in her class.

You wouldn't know it right now, considering how loud and abrupt she was being, but Ino really was quite a prodigy in this area. She couldn't be too mad however, Ino was just looking out for her sister. If there was anything that Suzumi could understand it was that, she had lost her own sister nine years ago on a mission. It was why she had requested a transfer from active duty to the academy.

"Rin, I was going to speak to you privately after this but I guess now is as good a time as any, you've been selected for an apprenticeship."

This draws a gasp from everyone, including Quinn herself. An apprenticeship meant that a higher ranked shinobi specifically requested you to teach, and only you. They usually they came about as a result of a genin team. A sensei ends up taking an interest in one of their student in particular and wants to pass on their techniques to that student, but it was extremely rare for a ninja just to pick a student to take on one on one like this.

"Are you… I mean… who?" Quinn stutters out, the only person she could think of who might even consider this was Sarutobi-sensei but he was much, much too busy to do anything more than their once a week meeting. Wasn't he?

"I'm sorry Rin, it doesn't say who, it only says that on Thursday you are to report to training ground 14 at 0800."

"I will, thank you Suzumi-sensei." Quinn says, still in a bit of a daze, nudging Ino.

Ino stands and bows, now feeling a little bit embarrassed by her outburst, "Yes, thank you Suzumi-sensei, and I'm sorry for my outburst."

"Don't worry about it this time. Alright class, I would just like to take this time and on behalf of the teachers here at the academy congratulate each and every one of you on all of the hard work you have put in here. You are now genin of the Village Hidden in the Leaves and I know that each and every one of you will leave your mark on this world. Work hard, train hard, and do your very best, and I know that you will not only make us here at the academy proud, but this village as well. It was an honor to teach you."

A chorus of "Thank you for all you have taught us." followed.

"You're jōnin instructors should all be here soon," _except for one…_ "So please wait here until they arrive." And with that Suzumi-sensei leaves.

"I'm not sure how I feel about this, I mean on the one hand, an apprenticeship, that's pretty cool. But on the other hand, I can't help but think that you should be teamed up with one of us." Ino grumbles.

Quinn smiles. "Well, you aren't either."

Ino groans, "Don't remind me, I can't believe I'm stuck with Shikamaru and Chouji, I'm being punished for something I just know it."

"Be nice, Shikamaru's…"

"Lazy, has the lowest scores in class, is a misogynistic jerk?" Ino questions innocently.

"I _can_ hear you, you know?" Shikamaru says with a scowl.

"I didn't whisper." Ino snaps right back.

"Troublesome." Shikamaru mumbles to himself before placing his head on the table and seeming to fall right to sleep.

"Well what about Chouji, that's not too bad."

"Yeah, but he seems fairly oblivious to anything that isn't that bag of chips in his hands… how they can be the children of Uncle Shikaku and Uncle Chouza is beyond me."

Quinn gives her sister a sympathetic smile. Ino was going to have her work cut out for her, both Shikamaru and Chouji had a ton of potential, their fathers and even Aunt Yoshino were all exceptional shinobi, Uncle Shikaku was the jōnin commander for crying out loud. Shikamaru and Chouji both had access to all kinds of training. They just didn't utilize it, or even seem to care. They weren't even middle of the pack, they were the tail end. They could do so much better, be so much better, they just didn't care to.

As babies and children, that was fine, as a shinobi, that kind of attitude could get people killed. Who knew, maybe being assigned to a team would light a fire under them, but if it didn't she'd have to have a long and series talk with them about what would happen if Ino ever got hurt because they weren't taking this seriously.

"Yeah, sucks to be you." Sakura teases Ino as she and Naruto join the conversation.

"Shut it." Ino growls, while Sakura and Naruto exchange another fist bump.

"Well it seems you two are excited. I'm happy for both of you, it's so cool that you got teamed up together." Quinn says.

"Yeah, I'm feeling kind of relieved, it'll be nice to have Naruto there with me." Sakura says.

"Yeah, how awesome is it that we're on a team together Sakura! We're gonna kick everyone's ass, believe it!" Naruto cheers. "Too bad we're stuck with that jerk Sasuke, man, why couldn't it have been Rin or Ino instead?" Naruto pouts.

"Naruto, be nice. Rin has been chosen for an apprenticeship so we should be happy for her. And Ino has her own team to worry about. Besides Sasuke is a part of our team now, we're all going to have to learn to work together. In fact, Sasuke, would you like to come join us?" Sakura asks as she turns in her seat to look back at the brooding boy.

Sasuke just gives a noncommittal grunt and looks away. Sakura's shoulders slump. "Right… maybe next time."

"You jackass, Sakura is nice enough to invite your lame ass over and you turn her down, just what the hell is your problem!" Naruto shouts.

"Well who asked her to?" Sasuke growls back, pointedly refusing to even look at Naruto as he says this.

"Why you- gah!"

Sakura yanks Naruto back into his seat, he'd jumped up and been ready to march over there and start some kind of fight. "Don't worry about it Naruto, he'll come around. In the meantime, don't let him get to you."

"I wonder if they'd allow us to switch teams, you know, me for Sasuke." Ino wonders out loud.

"That's a great idea we should totally go see the old man about it!"

As Naruto and Ino begin to plan out how they would convince the Hokage to switch their teams around, and if they were unable to convince him, beat him to a pulp according to Naruto, Sakura leans over to speak with Rin.

"So, are you excited, it sucks that you have to wait until Thursday to finally meet your sensei, any idea of who it might be?"

"Well my first thought was Sarutobi-sensei... what?" Quinn laughs at the look on Sakura's face.

"Sorry, it just still kind of freaks me out that you refer to Lord Hokage as "Sarutobi-sensei," it's just so familiar."

Quinn giggles, "Yeah it was a little strange for me at first too, but I don't know, we've done a lot together and he's helped me so much and he doesn't seem to mind. But I can't imagine that it's him though as much as I'd like it to be, he's so busy that it's amazing he's made the time for me that he already has, I don't know how he could possibly make any more."

"Nah, I bet it is the old man!" Naruto interjects with a grin. "It's gotta be, you guys have spent the last few years training together, it's about damn time he made it official."

"Maybe, and I honestly don't know who else it could be though, I mean maybe, maybe, it could be Asuma Sarutobi, we've met a couple times, but I don't think I made that big of an impression on him, and certainly not enough of one that he'd want to take me on exclusively."

"I am excited for you but I still really don't like not knowing. I mean what's with all the mystery, the least they could do is send you a name." Ino says. "I guess it could be worse though, I mean the Hokage wouldn't have approved an apprenticeship for you with just anybody so they have to be strong, and at least you haven't been stuck on a team even worse than the one I'm on… man this sucks."

"I can still hear you woman!" Shikamaru growls.

"So?" Ino snaps at him, "I haven't said anything that isn't true. I am stuck with you and it does suck. You, are going to have to shape up because I am not going to be held back just because of your lazy ass."

"Troublesome woman." Shikamaru mutters under his breath.

Shikamaru and Ino hadn't gotten along since her and Ino's sixth birthday party and Shikamaru had spilled cherry fruit punch on Ino's brand new Yukata. It had been an accident of course, but Ino had reacted with all the grace of an upset six year old, which meant none at all, and Shikamaru had stubbornly refused to apologize stating that Ino had bumped into him. That pretty much set the stage for their relationship to this day.

Ino then fixes her glare onto Chouji who gulps nervously, "And as for you, enjoy that bag of potato chips while you can because it's going to be your last one for a while. I get that your clan techniques require a lot of calories to successfully perform, but what you've been eating is just empty calories that do more harm than good. I'm not going to have myself or a mission put in jeopardy just because you aren't eating right. I'll be stopping by your place later and going over a better diet plan for you with Aunt Miso."

Quinn can't help but giggle at the look of horror on Chouji's face. Chouji's only real crime in Ino's opinion was that he hung out with Shikamaru, unfortunately for him that was more than enough. He really hadn't changed much from the sweet happy baby Quinn had met him as. And while she was being a little more forceful than Quinn would have been, Ino had a valid point. While the Akimichi's needed a high calorie intake to successfully and safely perform their clan techniques, junk foods like potato chips were the wrong kind and did more harm than good and gave him much less energy to work with as well.

"Well it seems I've been stuck with a lively bunch. Team 10, you're with me." A handsome, bearded jōnin with a cigarette in his mouth says from the doorway, grabbing the attention of everyone in the class. Rin recognized him as Asuma Sarutobi, the Third Hokage's son. She'd met him once or twice while training with Sarutobi-sensei, but really only in passing.

Quinn gives Ino and encouraging smile, who looks very reluctant to go. "You'll do great, that's Asuma Sarutobi, the Third's son. They must have a lot of faith in you to place you under his guidance. He was one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, the shinobi chosen to protect the fire lord."

Ino looks a little more encouraged after that and with a quick hug for her sister and a brief wave to Sakura and Naruto, quickly follows after her new team and sensei.

"I want to know who we've got." Naruto wonders out loud. "It sounds like Ino got somebody cool, I hope we did too."

"I'm sure that whoever it is, is more than qualified." Sakura answers, "After all, they don't just let anybody become a jōnin sensei. Only the very best are chosen."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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"What kind of loser did they stick us with!?" Sakura screams in rage. It had been three hours, three, and team seven's sensei still hadn't shown up. Everyone else was gone, except for Quinn who had decided to stick around until all of her friends were gone. She wanted to know who was training Sakura and Naruto. There wasn't anything she could do to change it, but it would help make her feel better if she knew which jōnin was looking out for them. She didn't know any of them personally, but her father allowed her to read through his bingo books and so she was pretty up to date on the who's who of the ninja world.

"I'm sure he must have a very good reason for being so late." Quinn offers, but even she was feeling a little apprehensive. Whoever their sensei was, they were running exceptionally late.

Naruto nods his head knowingly, "Yep, I figured this would happen. The old man fears all of the progress that I'm making and is obviously trying to sabotage me so that I can't take his place. So he's stuck us with a lemon for a jōnin sensei and now there is only one solution. I must kill the Hokage." Here he glances over at Sakura, "What's the penalty for assassinating the Hokage?"

"It's death, but only if we get caught, now here's what I propose-" Sakura says.

"Guys! Don't you think you're being a little overly dramatic?" Quinn asks.

Both Naruto and Sakura give her a blank look as if she'd spoken some kind of strange and foreign language.

"Right… I guess not."

Quinn couldn't blame them for being upset though, it really was very unprofessional for their sensei to be this late and not send them any kind of message. All three members of team seven were quite pissed. Sakura and Naruto were more vocal about it but even Sasuke was quietly simmering away, maybe it was best just to let them plot and blow off some steam… then again Naruto had just mentioned exploding tags on the Hokage monument so maybe she should step in.

"Hey guys, why don't we get some training in?" Quinn offers, "You know, do something productive while you wait?"

"Sure." Sakura says.

"But nothing too strenuous, you're still healing." Naruto adds. Quinn smiles indulgently, she was physically fine now, though she still had her cast on and wouldn't be cleared for active duty until Thursday. Naruto and Ino had both been a couple of mother hens while she had been healing. "But first…" Naruto then goes over to the blackboard and grabs the eraser, he then runs it over as much chalk dust as he can getting it as dusty as possible. He then places the chalk high up in between the door and the doorframe so that whoever opened the door next, the chalky eraser would fall on their head and cover them in dust.

"You idiot, no jōnin is going to fall for such a stupid trick." Sasuke sneers.

Sakura nods her head in approval of what Naruto is doing. "Too bad it's not something heavier, like a brick… three freaking hours…" She grumbles.

When Naruto is finished he goes over to Rin and Sakura. "Alright, so what should we do?"

Just as Quinn is about to answer she senses someone approaching, possibly jōnin level. The strangest part of this presence though was that whoever it was, was feeling… giddy, like they were doing something naughty and enjoying it. "Hold that thought Naruto, I think you're sensei's coming."

A couple of minutes later a head pokes through the door, however before they can say anything the eraser falls down on their head with a puff of smoke. Naruto falls to the floor rolling in laughter and Sakura tries and fails to hide her own giggles, having zero sympathy for the man who had made her wait three hours and Quinn didn't even need her sensor abilities to be able to sense the disgust rolling off Sasuke towards the man who had apparently fallen for such a lame trick.

Quinn however was stunned. She could read the guy better now that he was closer, he was suppressing his chakra but she could tell that he was strong. Like scary strong. And Quinn recognized him as well, she had just read up on him a couple of weeks ago. Naruto and Sakura were being assigned to Hatake Kakashi, also known as Copycat Kakashi or Sharingan Kakashi, the man who was said to have copied over a thousand jutsu. Though, she was having a hard time reconciling the man blinking stupidly at them with the living legend she had read about.

"Hmmm…" Kakashi hums aloud. "My first impression of all of you is…"

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke all wait with bated breath. "I hate you. Meet me on the roof." And with that he walks away.

"That's it!? That's him, that's the guy we've been waiting for!? That tears it, Sakura, we go after the Hokage tonight!"

"Right!"

"Count me in." Sasuke adds to everyone's shock.

"Guys, don't any of you know who that is?" Quinn asks.

Naruto and Sakura give her a curious look while Sasuke just scowls.

"That's Copycat Kakashi. They say he's copied over one thousand jutsu and that he's one of the strongest ninjas that this village has ever produced."

"Really? Him?"

"That guy?"

"Yeah, I can tell you right now, he's the strongest jōnin to show up today. I don't know what he's thinking or why he was so late but don't let him fool you, that guy is one seriously powerful ninja." Quinn almost felt giddy, Ino was being looked after by the Hokage's son, a ninja powerful enough to be asked to protect the fire lord and Naruto and Sakura were being looked after by, arguably, the most powerful jōnin in the village.

"Well if Rin says he's okay I guess we can give him a shot." Sakura says hesitantly, not quite sure if she believed Rin or not.

"Humph, he's still a jerk for being late… and what the hell does he mean he hates us!? He hasn't even met us yet and he's the one who's made a bad first impression!" Naruto shouts.

"Just give him a chance, I'm sure you guys can learn a lot from him." Quinn encourages them.

"Right… well, come on we don't want to make our new sensei wait." Sakura says, the words tasting like ash in her mouth. Naruto grumbles but follows along.

"Good luck Naruto, Sakura, do your best."

"Thanks Rin."

"We'll see you later okay."

"Good luck to you too Sasuke." Quinn says as he passes by her.

Sasuke does his best to ignore her, but he can't help but glare at her out of the corner of his eye as he goes past her. There was something about Rin that just rubbed him the wrong way. Something about her that was just wrong. He didn't mind Ino or Sakura, he didn't particularly care for either of them and it was a little frustrating that they currently surpassed him in skill but he could deal with it. Rin Yamanaka was a completely different story. For some inexplicable reason he absolutely hated her. He couldn't explain why, and it wasn't like she had done anything to him, in fact personality wise she was the least offensive person in his class. She certainly wasn't as obnoxious as Naruto or Kiba. It didn't matter though, for some reason, and it almost felt instinctual, like it was written into his very DNA, he hated her.

Quinn was well aware that she was not Sasuke's favorite person by any stretch of the imagination. Early on in the academy they had been neck and neck in terms of skill, however as time passed she began to surpass him and it seemed like anything he could do she could do better. And what was worse is eventually she pulled Ino and Sakura along with her as well.

Sasuke had a huge chip on his shoulder and either dismissed others as useless or, in Rin's case if they were doing better than him, as a rival to overcome. It was like he took their success as a personal slight, or at least hers. He certainly didn't have the same animosity towards Ino and Sakura that he did towards her. Quinn felt sorry for him, he'd lost his entire family, and she could tell he was hurting, but he was completely unapproachable. He seemed to find solace in his anger, not that Quinn felt it was her duty to fix every sad or angry person she came across. She had her family and friends, they were her responsibility, if someone came to her for help then she'd try her best to help them, but otherwise she had enough on her plate without seeking trouble out.

Really, she just hoped that Naruto and Sakura could help him work out his issues enough that he wouldn't be a problem for them. As far as Quinn was concerned as long as his attitude didn't put Naruto and Sakura in any danger he could angst and brood to his heart's content. Otherwise it wasn't her any of her business.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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"Hey sweetheart, you're home late, I thought you were coming straight home after you found out your team assignment?" Her mother asks as Quinn steps into the house.

"Yeah, I was but I decided to hang out until Ino, Naruto, and Sakura all left. Ino's sensei came pretty early and I'll let her tell you all about it but poor Naruto and Sakura had to wait around for three hours before their sensei showed up."

Megumi giggles, "So, they got Kakashi did they."

Quinn quirks an eyebrow. "How did you know?"

"Kakashi has a… let's say a reputation for being late. As a ninja he's one of the best, he was a student of the Fourth Hokage and has made quite a name for himself, but when it comes to his social skills, well… they do say that all of the best ninja are a little crazy, your father certainly has his quirks."

"Do you know Kakashi mom?"

"We've met once or twice, your father's gone on a couple of missions with him and knows him a little better. But what about you honey, tell me about your team?"

"Oh, um, I actually haven't been assigned to a team."

"What do you mean you haven't been assigned to a team?" Megumi asks, concerned.

"Apparently I've grabbed the attention of someone because I've been chosen for an apprenticeship." Quinn shakes her head, still not quite able to believe it.

Megumi's brow furrows. "And how do you feel about that?" This was strange, not unheard of, but definitely strange. Also, why hadn't whoever requested Rin come talk to her or Inoichi? While in order to take on an apprentice you technically only needed the approval of the Hokage, it was still customary, not to mention polite, for the sensei to at least speak with the ninja in question's parents or guardians, at least if they were under the age of fifteen like Rin was. She would have to talk to Inoichi, and see what he knew about this.

Quinn shrugs her shoulders, "It is what it is. I mean it's a little weird and I'm kind of disappointed that I didn't get to be on a team with my friends or Ino. I'm also a little confused, I just can't imagine who would want me, you know. I mean the only person I can think of who it might be is Sarutobi-sensei but he's way too busy to take on a student full time and I can't recall anyone who I might have made enough of an impression on that they would request me, not to mention someone that Sarutobi-sensei would approve. But on the other hand…" Here Quinn smiles, "I'm kind of excited too. I mean, I should learn a lot right? I just hope I live up to their expectations, there must be a reason they chose me."

"You just do your best sweetheart, that's always been enough. You've proven that time and time again. So don't worry about it too much, okay."

"Okay."

"Well, your father's not due back for another hour and who knows when Ino will get back today, do you want to help me start dinner?"

"Sure, what are we having?"

"You pick."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Hey, so how was today, really?" Quinn asks as she joins Ino on her bed, the two of them just finishing up getting ready for bed.

Ino lays back with a dramatic sigh. "I'm not sure. I know daddy's excited for me and I don't want to let him down but I honestly don't know how I'm going to work with Shikamaru and Chouji."

"You could have told him the truth, he wouldn't have cared… no, wait, that's not right. He would have cared but not in the way that you were worried about. He loves you, you won't let him down just because you're apprehensive about your team."

"I know that but… did you see how happy he was, I didn't want to take that from him, but I really don't know how this is going to work. I don't really think either Shikamaru or Chouji have what it takes to be ninja, I mean you should have seen them today. They were disinterested in everything Asuma-sensei had to say, Shikamaru kept nodding off and Chouji… he wasn't really any better. And now tomorrow we have this stupid test to see if we'll even get to stay genin or if we'll be sent back to the academy for another year. It's not fair, I've worked so hard to get where I am to just have them drag me down."

Quinn could feel the hopelessness radiating from Ino and Quinn felt really bad for her sister. "I'm really sorry. Is there anything I can do?"

Ino shakes her head, "No, I mean part of me really wants to pass tomorrow, Asuma-sensei seems really great, and I don't want to go back, but another part of me kind of hopes we do fail, you know? I keep trying to convince myself that another year at the academy wouldn't be too bad and that once it was over I would at the very least get assigned to a different team."

"Maybe you should talk to daddy, he worked with Uncle Shikaku and Uncle Chouza, maybe he can help you." Quinn offers up.

"Maybe but… I don't know, I guess a part of me was also really hoping that you and I would be on a team, you know?"

"Yeah… I wanted that too." Quinn says sadly.

"It just feels strange, we've done everything together since we were little and now we're just, apart. It doesn't feel right. And now even Sakura and Naruto are on a different team and everything is just different. I mean I knew the four of us couldn't always be together, you know, but I still kind of hoped that it would still happen. Like they'd make an exception. We all worked so well together and we were all so passionate and motivated. We all wanted to get stronger, we wanted to improve and help each other, and now I'm stuck on a team with two guys who don't seem like they could care any less."

"I know what you mean, I honestly completely forgot about the team assignments for a while, it wasn't until just before the fight with Mizuki that I was reminded of them. I wish I could be with you guys too, I mean, I have no idea what I'm even in for."

"I just want to know why, why did they split us up? Naruto and Sakura got paired together and that's great but what about you and me, we would have made a great team and it's not like they haven't put siblings on the same team before."

Quinn smiles, trying to make Ino feel better, "We'd have been completely unstoppable together, they probably split us up so that we wouldn't make everyone else look bad by comparison."

Ino giggles, "Yeah, the unstoppable Yamanaka sisters, the most badass kunoichi to have ever lived. Stand back Lady Tsunade there are two new legends around here now."

"I'd do all the grunt work of course and you would think circles around our enemies. You know, assuming you even let me have a chance to fight them, what's that new technique you've been working on called again?"

Ino grins at the mention of her pride and joy, her first original technique, "You mean my **Miasma Shuriken**?"

"That's the one, between the two of us every mission would be easy as pie." Quinn laughs.

"Exactly!" Ino's smile starts to disappear. "I… I'm worried. How can I work with a team that doesn't seem to want to work?"

"You'll find a way sis, you'll whip them into shape and one day your team is going to be so famous that they won't even remember daddy's team. You can do it Ino, you can make this work, I know you can."

"Maybe, but… damn it, I shouldn't have to. It shouldn't be my job to motivate my team, they should want to be the best all on their own, not because I force them to. I'd help them if they asked of course, even that jerk Shikamaru but I know that they won't. It's like they don't even want to be ninja… it's not fair." Ino's voice cracks at the end.

"Ino…" Quinn wraps her arms around her sister who starts to cry, the frustration finally getting to her.

"I've worked so hard… and… and if we don't pass this test tomorrow… then none of it will have mattered… I don't want to go back to the academy but with those two… I just don't know how we have any chance of passing."

"Hey, it'll all work out, maybe they'll surprise you tomorrow, you know? They can't completely suck if they managed to graduate. I know it's not fair for you to be the one to have to motivate them, you're right they should want to improve all on their own, but maybe they need you to. At least for right now, and maybe that's why this team was formed because they think you're the only one who can get them into gear. This combination has worked great in the past, they wouldn't just set you up just to fail Ino, you're way too good for that."

"Maybe…" Ino says hesitantly, her tears starting to subside.

"No maybe about it," Quinn says, wiping away a tear from Ino's face, "You are going to be so fantastic tomorrow that Shikamaru and Chouji won't be able to help themselves, they're going to want to get in on the action too. You'll see."

Ino laughs and hiccups, feeling a little bit better now. "You really think so?"

"Definitely, hell I bet you make chūnin before all of us. And Ino?"

"Yeah?"

"You really should talk to daddy about this, he's been on this team before, he knows how it works, talk to him. Tell him your fears and concerns, I'll bet anything you want that he'll know how to help you."

Ino is quiet for a moment, "You're probably right. I should go talk to him now." Ino says as she pulls away from her sister and gets off of the bed, "I hope Sakura and Naruto are having a better time than I am?"

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Sakura lay wide awake in her bed, stressing about the coming morning. Tomorrow there would be a test to determine whether or not they would stay on team seven or be sent back to the academy. It was very possible that tomorrow all of the hard work that she had done would mean absolutely nothing. Because come tomorrow, if she failed, she would have to start all over again.

It wasn't fair. She had faith in Naruto, and even Sasuke to a certain degree, but Kakashi sensei was a different story all together, it was like he wanted them to fail. Telling them that the test only had a thirty three percent pass rate, that it was going to be so difficult that they shouldn't even eat because they'd throw up, it was like he was trying to demoralize them so that they would go in already defeated. And it was working, maybe not for the reasons that Kakashi-sensei wanted it to, but because it was so obvious that their potential teacher didn't want them to, or expect them to pass.

She had been so proud of herself for getting as far as she had. She had gone from a strictly middle of the pack kunoichi, nothing special about her at all, to the third best student in her class. And it wasn't like she neglected the other aspects of the ninja arts either, she knew a couple of Ninjutsu and Genjutsu to supplement her Taijutsu.

She had potential, she knew she could go far if she was just given the chance, she'd proved that she could, but now she was stuck with someone who didn't seem to care. Sakura sighs, it was getting late and staying up and worrying wasn't going to do her any good. Tomorrow was going to be rough. But before Sakura can go to sleep however she hears a tapping at her window.

"Huh? Who's there?" She asks aloud as she slowly reaches for a kunai.

"Sakura, hurry up and open the window, it's me." Naruto whispers… well he does a Naruto version of a whisper which, still, really wasn't all that quiet.

Sakura goes over to her window and opens it and Naruto slips inside. "Naruto, what are you doing here so late?"

"Look, Kakashi-sensei is a jerk and I refuse to let him fail us. We've worked too hard to get where we are to let it all come to an end just because of him."

Sakura looks down, "But what can we do?"

Naruto gives her a foxy grin, "We know the area that the test is going to take place, we may not know what the test is _going_ to be, but we know _where_ it will be. I say we go there right now and set it up. Give ourselves the advantage. You know tripwires, pitfall, whatever we can think of."

Sakura grins at Naruto, suddenly feeling much more confident about their chances. "You mean cheat?"

"Hello, ninja."

"Right, let's do it." Sakura laughs quietly. They had nothing to lose in Sakura's opinion and everything to gain. Who knew, maybe they would pass in spite of Kakashi-sensei. Naruto was right, they'd worked too hard to let it all come to an end just because of one man. She was really grateful to have been placed on a team with her friend.

"We should grab Sasuke too."

"What! Why!?"

"Would you keep it down, you don't want my parents to hear you, do you?" Sakura hisses.

Naruto looks at the door wide eyed as he clamps his hands over his mouth. "Oops, sorry." He whispers. "But still, why him?"

"Because like it or not, he's on our team, we can't exclude him just because he can be a jerk sometimes."

Naruto still doesn't look convinced. So Sakura tries a different tactic.

"Besides if we do this without him then he might get caught in one of our traps and it could ruin our chances."

"Alright, fine. But we still do this whether or not he agrees come, deal?"

"Deal, but we do need to at least make the offer."

"Fine, but you talk to him, because I really don't want to."

Sakura rolls her eyes but agrees.

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 **xXx—xXx**

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 **Author's Note: So I want to be clear, the characters opinions of other characters are not necessarily my opinion. For exampler, Ino and Shikamaru. We all know that Shikamaru is strong and crazy-genius-smart, but all Ino sees, heck what most people see is a slacker, and that's going to rub Ino the wrong way. Quite frankly, right now, Ino doesn't like Shikamaru and vice-versa. And with Sasuke, the Sakura in this story isn't crushing on him, and so personality wise, though I would argue he had good cause to be standoffish and cold, she doesn't particularly care for Sasuke. She doesn't hate him, in fact, Naruto doesn't hate him either, maybe viciously dislikes him lol, but he doesn't hate him. I guess what I'm trying to get at is that I'm not going to bash characters in this story. However, that doesn't mean that some characters won't fight or not get along with each other.**

 **It's my belief that you can have your characters not like another character and still avoid bashing them, i.e. making them supremely weak, or humiliating them, or turning them into caricatures of themselves. Sasuke's dealing with a lot, his family was murdered by his brother, his hero, he has every right to be angry at the world. That doesn't change the fact that there are times when he was a jerk, plain and simple, but I never got the pampered prince vibe from him that a lot of Naruto fic's give him. To be sure, he's a real asshole at times, and for most of the series I don't particularly care for him, but that doesn't mean he's a two dimensional character. I'm harping on Sasuke because he's the best example of this, but it applies to all characters in my story. I'm trying to write them all as people, with motivations and personalities. I would consider it a failure on my part as a writer if I treated that character as a punching bag. For the most part I'm not a fan of character bashing. Even if I don't like a character, even if Quinn, Naruto, Ino, and/or Sakura don't like a character, I still feel I need to be fair to them.**

 **Sasuke is still a skilled shinobi for a genin, it's just that Quinn, Ino, and Sakura have currently surpassed him. Shikamaru is still a genius, it's just, I'm writing this story from the perspective of characters who hate laziness. So when a character gives an opinion of another character, it's just that, an opinion. I don't want someone reading this story thinking that I'm treating their favorite character unfairly. So if you like Sasuke and/or Shikamaru, or any other future character who may initially be viewed unfavorably by one of the main cast, then please believe me when I say that as a writer I'm trying my best to be fair to them and that at the very least it is not my intent to humiliate them within my story.**


	19. Chapter 18

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Glee. Really sorry about the late update, my internet was down all day, it was a giant pain in the ass.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 18-xXx**

 **s**

Asuma Sarutobi laughs as Kurenai finishes describing her team's first meeting, before taking a sip of his coffee. It was early in the morning and he and Kurenai were at " _the Lounge,"_ a café and bar that acted as a kind of hang out spot for the village's jōnin when they were off duty. They were catching up with each other before they had to meet with their potential teams later in the morning. "Well, it seems like I'm not the only one to get an interesting bunch."

Kurenai smiles at him, "Yes, it doesn't help that poor Hinata is so terribly shy either, if she could just gain a little confidence she could go so far. Assuming they pass I'm going to have my work cut out for me in that area. The Inuzuka boy, however, has confidence in spades. He could use a little of Hinata's humility."

"I don't know about that, those Inuzuka's have always been a rather… confident bunch, mind you they usually have reason to be. Tsume is a world class shinobi and her daughter Hana is quite skilled too, if Hana's any indication I can't imagine that Tsume's let her son's training slip."

"Oh I'm not saying the boy doesn't have reason to be confident or that he doesn't have potential, but until he's tempered down a bit he'll be hard to work with." Kurenai says, taking a drink from her own coffee.

"What about your third member, the Aburame boy?" Kakashi asks as he slides up next to them at the bar, followed closely by his best friend and "rival" Guy.

Kurenai smiles. "He's a quiet one, always listening, always observing. I've done a couple of missions with his father before and he was the same way. It was a pleasure to serve with him though and if the boy is anything like his father he'll go far. Actually Asuma, I'm a little jealous of you, you got Ino Yamanaka and I'd specifically put in a request for her for my team."

Asuma looks a little surprised. "Really, I'd requested the younger sister, Rin."

Kurenai giggles, "Well of course _you_ would pick her, by all accounts she's quite the little fire bug too."

"Isn't she the one that the Third's taken an interest in?" Kakashi asks, catching the attention of everyone listening.

"Yeah, shocked the hell out of me when he did too, I mean dad had pretty much sworn off taking on students after the sannin, and especially after what happened with Orochimaru. But she's got a lot of talent, I'll give her that. I've met her a couple of times, just in passing really but I've watched her and dad train on a few occasions. That one is focused, if she keeps it up she'll make jōnin in a year or two, easy. I think I would have enjoyed working with her and teaching her a couple of my fire techniques and how to supplement them with wind techniques. But someone beat me to her."

"Really, who?" Kurenai asks.

"Don't know, I asked dad about it and he said that someone else put in the request before me. He wouldn't say who though, so there wasn't much I could do about it and it really wasn't that big of a deal. Anyway, you said you wanted my student, Ino?" Asuma asks.

"Yeah, she's supposed to be a bit of a prodigy herself, especially in some of the more subtle shinobi arts. I heard she got a perfect score in her poison and toxins class as well as a perfect score in her interrogation and counter interrogation classes. I thought she would do really well with some genjutsu to help supplement her skills."

"That's not so surprising considering who her father is. Inoichi was that way too." Guy throws in with a grin.

Asuma chuckles. "The poor girl has her work cut out for her though. She's very driven and her teammates really, really, aren't. I mean Shikaku and Chouza are fairly laid back themselves, but their sons take it to a whole other level. I'm wondering what the Old Man was thinking when he made the decision to put them together to be honest. I mean I can see the appeal of recreating _that_ team, but I don't know how successful this incarnation is going to be."

"You don't think they're going to pass your test today?" Kurenai asks.

Asuma shrugs, "It's hard to say. The talent and the potential is there, but they aren't exactly off to a smooth start. Ino is too forceful with them, she's got the right idea, but a gentler hand from her would go a long way to improving things. Then again, those two boys aren't exactly making it easy for her either. Like I said, she's very driven. She wants to be the very best she can be and it shows, she was number two in her class only beaten out by her sister in overall scores, and now she's on a team with two boys who are at the bottom of the barrel, they just barely scraped by with a graduating score. It's got to be frustrating for her, on any other team I'd say she'd pass the test no problem. With those two, well, I'm rooting for her anyways. Hell I'm rooting for all of them, but we'll see."

"My team is going to pass." Kakashi says nonchalantly. "Maybe…"

This draws a gasp of shock from all of the surrounding jōnin sensei and Kurenai even chokes a bit on her drink. Kakashi was notorious for failing his teams, he ran the bell test which was specifically designed to turn teams against one another and force them to fail.

All tests performed by the jōnin sensei were designed to inspire teamwork. To really get the newly graduated genin to think of themselves as a unit rather than individuals, they were designed to force them to work together and really drive it home that they were one. Teams that couldn't come together were failed and sent back to the academy.

The "bell test," which Kakashi always ran, was different. It was designed specifically to pit teammates against each other, the goal being to try and get them to put the team ahead of themselves and come together for the mission even if it meant that the team moved on and the individual did not.

"Kakashi! My rival, are you saying that you, _you_ , are going to pass a team!? This is the most wonderful of news! I've always known this day would come, where you would finally help the next generation of shinobi fan their flames of youth! And you'll be teaching my sweet little Sakura as well, we'll have to ask her and see which one of us she thinks is the better teacher, eh Kakashi? I hope you won't be too put out that one of your students will pick me!" Guy laughs.

"Huh? I'm sorry, did you say something?"

"Gah! Ka… Ka… Shi… Ha ha ha, my eternal rival, always so hip!" Guy then gets a little more serious. "But tell me truthfully, do you honestly think this team will pass." He had more than just a passing interest in this, while it was never anything official he still considered Sakura Haruno to be a student of his and not only that, Kakashi was his best friend. Everyone there thought that him taking on a team could only be a good thing for their friend's mental health. A way to kind of re-ground him and help him to reconnect with people.

"I think they've got a shot." Kakashi says with a noncommittal shrug, but anyone who knew him well could see that he was actually fairly excited by the prospect.

"Well considering who you have on your team I'd say it's not all that shocking." Kurenai says, "I mean you have the last Uchiha as well as the Jinchūriki, and from all reports that Haruno girl is quite the powerhouse as well."

"You did a little bit of training with her, right Guy?" Asuma asks.

"I did indeed, and it was an absolute pleasure to teach her, I really wish I could have had both her and my Lee on a team. I've watched her grow from a timid little flower into the beautiful beast that she has become. Ah ha, my Lee has such a crush on her! Oh to be young and in love, truly her flames of youth will continue to grow and ignite a glorious future and I couldn't be more proud! If she can't have me then at the very least she deserves a jōnin sensei of Kakashi's caliber."

The rest of the group chuckles appreciatively, used to Guy's overly exuberant antics. It truly spoke to Guy's character that he could have such a long career and still have such a positive attitude.

"Hmm, yes, I guess they're all skilled to some degree." Kakashi admits, "And yeah, there's a little bit of that political pressure to pass at least Naruto and Sasuke, but that doesn't matter to me. I won't pass any team that doesn't deserve it and quite frankly this is the first team I've been given that shows any potential. Who they are beyond what they can do as a team is irrelevant right now."

"You've failed six teams already, what makes this one so different, if not who is on it?" Kurenai asks. She was certainly getting pressure to pass her team whatever the outcome of her test because it held Hinata and Shino, two clan heirs, and Kiba the son of a clan head. It was ultimately her decision of course, but she didn't have nearly the political clout that Kakashi did to just ignore who her team was.

"Well… the fact that they're already working as a team." Kakashi says with a smile, "Even now my three potential students are at the training ground and setting up "traps" for me."

This gets a laugh out of all of them. "Really? Well that's new." Asuma says.

"Yeah, it's kind of cute actually that they think I don't know about it, but I certainly can't fault them for doing it. I mean I did give them the time and place of the test and if they want to take the initiative like that, why not let them and see what happens. We'll see how long this teamwork of theirs lasts when they learn the specifics of the test though."

"I wouldn't count them out Kakashi, Sakura and Naruto are already pretty good friends, it's not surprising that they were already predisposed to work together." Guy says.

"Yeah, but Naruto and Sasuke can't stand each other." Kakashi says "And just because Sakura and Naruto can work together doesn't mean they can work with Sasuke. And assuming those two work together, which I am, if they end up excluding Sasuke then they'll still fail because they'll have missed the point of the test. Or even if they include Sasuke, if he refuses to work with them that will earn them a failure as well. It's easy to work with someone you like, I want to see if they can put aside their friendships and differences and come together as a team. Still, I think they've got the best shot at if of all the teams I've been assigned."

"Well, I wish you and your team luck, I really hope everything works out for all of you. And on that note, I should probably head out. I don't want to be late." Kurenai says, standing up.

"Yeah, I should probably go too." Asuma adds.

"I… think I'm going to sit here and read my book." Kakashi says, taking a seat and pulling out the latest addition of Icha Icha Paradise.

"Kakashi! Don't tell me you're really going to just sit there and read that smut while making your cute little students wait for you!?" Guy shouts, scandalized. He was well aware of Kakashi's habits but it still shocked him every time he was exposed to it.

"Hmm, it's no big deal I won't make them wait too long-"

"Phew, for a minute there-"

"Two hours at most… three if the story picks up which considering who the author is, it probably will."

Asuma and Kurenai both chuckle as they wave goodbye to their friends and head out. Leaving Guy to lecture Kakashi, futilely, about responsibility.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"So, how do you plan to capture me all on your own? And even more importantly, how do you plan to get the information I have without back up. I'm too fast for you to use your mind transfer jutsu on and I'm too skilled for you to take head on in a fight?" Asuma asks. He was actually quite impressed with the young girl standing in front of him.

He'd initially wanted her sister as a student but facing her now he could definitely see the potential that this girl had. She was completely outclassed and alone and yet she showed no fear. She looked confident, even a little cocky and he could respect that. A ninja needed confidence even in the face of certain defeat, you had to go into every mission with the mindset that you were going to be successful.

Ino lets out a cocky little laugh as she adjusts her stance slightly and reaches for a kaiken that she had strapped to her back, "You're right, as a jōnin you outclass me in just about every aspect of being a shinobi. I don't disagree with that, I know my own skills and I know where I stand and I know what I can do, however _sensei_ let me ask you a question, do you?"

Asuma quirks an eyebrow, intrigued. This girl was already going for the mind games, this he had to hear. "By all accounts, you're a fairly competent student but nothing special. Certainly you aren't nearly as skilled in combat as your sister who I've heard already has a B-Rank mission to her name."

Ino doesn't even flinch, which impressed him even more. Her psychological profile read that there might be some jealousy there against her sister, plus sibling rivalry was always a sore spot no matter how close they may be. It was a low blow on his part, but he honestly wanted to see how she'd react.

"You're right, in a fight my sister is in a whole other league than I am, she was picked personally by the Third Hokage to train and there's a good reason for it. My little sis is a genius and I couldn't be prouder of her. But this isn't about her, this is about me and you and quite frankly bringing up my sister is just petty and obvious on your part…" Here Ino smirks at him, "and a little ironic considering the Third chose her as student instead of you too, his own son."

Ouch, okay, now that hurt. Had he been a little younger and hadn't come to terms with the relationship that he did have with his father over the one that he had wanted then that would have thrown him. It was his own fault really for bringing it up, but he was impressed that the girl had seen the opening and known enough about him to use it. It was a shame she was currently likely to fail this test.

The goal of the test was simple, he had the knowledge of where a scroll was located that contained "vital" information. Team 10 was to capture him and learn the location of the scroll, retrieve it, and bring it to a specific location. He'd also placed a couple of traps around where the scroll was located, nothing too serious but enough to make it a little more interesting.

His test was designed to test them on the exact kind of missions that team 10 would be trained for, which were capture and interrogation missions. The test really was fairly straightforward and conceptually should have been easy enough to complete, he wanted to give them the best chance at passing they could get. Asuma figured that they could learn to get along better as time progressed… he'd been wrong though.

Team 10 had started of fairly good, things were tense but they seemed to have reached a decision to at least work together. It didn't last long, Ino and Shikamaru started arguing right off the bat, and couldn't agree on a plan on how to handle him. Ino favored a frontal assault, between his shadows and her and Chouji she felt that it was the best way to handle it. Shikamaru wanted to retreat into the forest and make him come to them, stating that they were no match for him and that it was their only shot.

She called him a coward, he called her and idiot, and all the while Chouji looked on torn, he ended up siding with Shikamaru in the end and followed his friend into the woods. And now here she was, all alone and yet she looked as confident as ever, she was planning something, that much was obvious, he just didn't know what.

He hears a twig snap off in the distance, _'Ah, so that's it, very clever. Once this is over I'll have to ask them how they pulled it off. I've got to admit they had me fooled.''_

"Let's get this show on the road, believe it or not I have better things to do than stand here in a field all day with some brat." He says dismissively.

"I'm going to make you eat those words." She says with a scowl, before her hands fly into a sequence of hand signs that looked familiar but he couldn't quite place. " **Poison Art! Poison Mist**!" She calls out before she spits out a poison fog that comes racing towards him.

The attack catches him by surprise, Poison Mist was an incredibly dangerous B-Rank jutsu that converted the users Chakra into a chemical that upon contact with the air turned into a deadly mist. The mist was so potent that even the slightest inhalation would kill the target in minutes, if not seconds. _'Where the hell did she learned a technique like that!?'_ He thinks to himself as he jumps out of the way, he was really going to have to take her more seriously.

Wait, something wasn't right here, the toxin's in the cloud should be killing all of the organic material that it was coming in contact with but the grass being consumed in the cloud was fine… a genjutsu? However before he can contemplate it even further a shadow out of the corner of his eye catches his attention.

" **Human Bullet Tank**!" Asuma hears Chouji call out and he sees a large spinning human boulder come shooting out at him. So he was right, the boys were here. He manages to move out of the way of the boulder as well, but before he can do anything else he finds he can't move. A quick glance down confirms that he's been captured, even if just briefly, by the **Shadow Bind Technique**.

So that was the plan all along, impressive, Ino acted as a distraction keeping him occupied until the other two were in place and then once they were, she attacked forcing him into moving into a position that would give Chouji his best shot with his technique, which even with him being a jōnin and Chouji a genin the technique would still hurt if it connected. They had known he would be fast enough to dodge Chouji's attack however, and were actually counting on him to dodge it, forcing him right into Shikamaru's technique.

The plan was almost perfect, however the difference in chakra between himself and Shikamaru meant that he could break free of the technique almost instantly. As he's doing that however, he sees Ino charge through the dissipating cloud she had created, her kaiken in hand and she slashes at him, he moves out of the way just in time to avoid any serious injury and suffers only a slight scratch to his hand.

He smiles as the three genin come to stand before him together, all of them looking ready for a fight. "Not bad, but still not quite good enough, you gave it your best shot though and you should be proud."

However his three students ignore him, "Did you get him?" Shikamaru asks.

"Oh yeah." Ino smirks, and with that the three of them all relax their stances and just stand there casually.

"What do you guys think you're-" Asuma pauses, his arm was suddenly numb. He looks down at the cut on his hand and is struck by a realization, her blade had been poisoned. And suddenly Asuma felt like the world's biggest idiot, just this morning Kurenai had told him that the girl had gotten a perfect score in her poisons and toxins classes, of course she would utilize them.

Asuma whistles appreciatively. "Alright, you got me. Care to hand over the antidote?"

Ino blinks at him innocently, "What antidote?"

Shikamaru and Chouji stare at her horrified while Asuma gives her a deadpanned look. "Seriously kid, the antidote, please." The numbness in his arm was starting to spread through his entire body, and while like every other jōnin he had some resistance training to a variety of poisons, this girl had obviously mixed up something special for just this occasion.

"The test's not over yet, we're going to need you to tell us where the scroll is located first." Ino says with a bright smile.

"Ah, c'mon kid, you've won, you've passed alright, now hand it over."

"No can do, you told us to treat this like we would a real mission and until we have and can verify the location of the scroll, you're an enemy combatant. Sorry." Ino says with a nonchalant shrug, not sounding sorry at all.

Asuma's shoulders droop, "That's cold." Meanwhile Shikamaru and Chouji are both thinking one thing _'Scary.'_

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Damn it! This guy is intense, our traps were all useless!" Naruto growls, frustration seeping from every syllable.

Sakura takes a deep and calming breath before shaking her head. "No, not useless. They've bought us some time to plan."

"Not that it matters," Sasuke sneers at her, "Even assuming we get both of those bells, one of us won't pass anyway."

Naruto glares at Sasuke who glares right back, neither one of them would be heartbroken if the other boy did not pass Kakashi's test. They had been arguing almost nonstop since last night when they got together to plan out what they were going to do and also all morning while they were setting up the various traps.

"And none of us will pass if we don't get them!" Sakura snaps, finally having enough of Sasuke's bad attitude. The situation was grim, best case scenario was only two of them passed, but they couldn't worry about that right now, they needed to take things one step at a time and right now, they had at least one thing that must happen. They had to get those bells and they had to do it soon. They were running out of time, they had to get them before noon and that meant they had barely a half an hour at most to get them. Once the bells were in hand, then, they could decide what to do with them.

"Alright, here's our situation. We have, at the most, a half an hour before the alarm rings and out time is up. Our target is two bells attached to the hip of a guy who is… well there's no other way to say it, he's kicking our ass. He's faster than us, stronger than us, and way more experienced than us." Sakura says.

"Geeze, way to look at the bright side." Naruto grumbles, before sending her a playful wink.

"Shut up," Sakura says, rolling her eyes, a smile tugging at her lips before she goes serious again. "We do, however, have three advantages."

"Really, what?" Naruto asks, while Sasuke looks at her curiously as well.

"One." Sakura says holding up a finger, "We've set the field to our advantage. We still have a few of our traps set up, and while they haven't stopped him the way we hoped, they have still provided a distraction that we can use."

"Two." Sakura says holding up a second finger, "We out number him. Individually we are no match for him, but together, maybe, just maybe we can pull off a win, but we'll have to be smart, quick, and work in perfect unison."

Sasuke scoffs, "Yeah, because both of those things have helped us so much, so far."

Sakura scowls at him, "I realize that, which brings me to our third and final advantage and in my opinion the most important one. He isn't taking us seriously. If he were this fight would be over and we'd all be back at the academy. He's toying with us and that's what's going to make the difference. We don't have to be better than him, we can't be, he's too strong, we just have to be good enough to catch him off guard."

Naruto gives her that foxy grin of his that he gets when they're about to do something sneaky. "Alright Sakura what's the plan."

"I'm the fastest one here, which means I'm the only one who has a chance of actually grabbing the bells."

"Uh-huh." Naruto nods his agreement and even though it looked painful for him to do so, Sasuke agrees as well.

"Sasuke, of the three of us, you're the most well rounded, you can use Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, and Genjutsu, all with quite a bit of skill, correct?"

"Correct."

"Then that means you're going to be the one that engages him head on, Naruto you and a couple of shadow clones will back him up. Now, Naruto is that seal you've been working on ready?"

"Yeah… but, he'll just tear it off, it won't slow him down for long." Naruto says.

"It doesn't have to, it just needs to surprise him and distract him. You're sure the seal will work?"

"Definitely, but I've only got the one right now, I haven't had time to modify any more."

"That's fine. Sasuke, you're entire goal in this fight is to provide an opening for Naruto to place his seal on Kakashi. Naruto, when Sasuke provides that opening, you have to attach it to his upper back shoulder, on his left side. His left, got it? The bells are hanging off of his right hip, so if he wants to remove the seal he'll have to leave himself open there. That's when I'll make my move and go for the bells."

"What kind of seal are we talking about here that's going to make that guy leave an opening?" Sasuke asks, genuinely curious.

Naruto grins. "I've done some modifications to a weight training seal, normally they only work if the person who they're applied to channels their own chakra into it, I've figured out how to bypass that. If I can attach the seal to them, they're instantly feeling an additional fifty pounds concentrated to one small area. Really distracting, assuming it doesn't just drop them on their ass." Naruto chuckles.

Naruto had really taken to fuuinjutsu. He wasn't developing his own seals yet, but he certainly seemed to have a flair for seal modification. Most people believed that you had to be book smart to be able to accomplish anything in fuuinjutsu, and to some degree they were correct. But Naruto was proving that creativity and imagination were just as important. You could study hard and acquire the intelligence necessary to perform fuuinjutsu. You couldn't, however, teach the creativity and instinct needed to excel in that art, both of which Naruto had in spades.

"Alright, let's assume a miracle happens and Naruto's seal works, is that really going to make a difference against this guy?"

"My seal will work you bastard, do you think you can actually get me an opening or are you all talk?" Naruto growls.

"This will work." Sakura interjects before they can start fighting again. "The seal won't stop him but it doesn't have to, it just has to slow him down a bit, once it does I have a little trick of my own that should make me fast enough to surprise him and take advantage of the opening to grab those bells. But this is our last shot, if anyone of us screws up, myself included, that's it. We're done and none of us will pass."

"And what happens after we get the bells. Why should I help you guys, when you and Naruto will just take them and I'll fail anyway?" Sasuke asks.

"You rat-bastard!" Naruto snarls.

"I'm just being realistic here. You and Naruto are friends." Sasuke says, completely ignoring the fuming Naruto. "It stands to reason that once you have both bells you'll just give the other one to him and keep one for yourself. This means, whether we get the bells or not, I still fail, so again, why should I help you?" Sasuke asks, arms crossed.

"You can have one and Naruto can take the other." Sakura says.

"No! Sakura-"

"It's okay Naruto, Sasuke is right, it isn't fair to him to do all this work for nothing and you have your dream of becoming Hokage right? It's not fair that you should be sent back, not when this is such an important first step for you besides… another year at the academy won't be so bad. I'll use the time to train up and get even stronger." Sakura says with a smile.

"Fine, deal. I'll help." Sasuke says.

"What!? No! No deal! Sakura what about you!?" Naruto asks, very upset.

"It'll be okay, really. Don't worry about me. I can't ask Sasuke to just help if there's nothing in it for him. And as for you and me, of the two of us, I'd rather see myself fail than you."

"But Sakura, I-"

"There's no time, if this is going to happen, we've got to go now." Sakura interrupts, as she gets up and heads towards the clearing where Kakashi was last seen.

"Fine, let's get this over with." Sasuke says, following after her.

"But Sakura… I feel the same way about you too." Naruto says quietly to himself before going after them.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Standing by, hiding and watching Naruto and Sasuke fight was harder than Sakura imagined it would be. She was desperate to get out there and help her team but she had a job to do. She had to wait for them to provide that opening for her. She had to admit that Sasuke was pretty skilled, more than she had realized. She was just so used to Rin, Ino, and Lee that she had kind of forgotten about him, but he really did have a lot of talent and he was certainly putting everything he had into this fight.

And even in this tense situation Naruto was still fun to watch. If Sakura had thought him an unconventional and crafty opponent before it was nothing compared to how he was now. Shadow Clone jutsu seemed to have been created specifically with Naruto in mind. Naruto's fighting style was already very unpredictable, even she had trouble reading him when they went all out, but once he truly mastered Shadow Clone jutsu he was going to be a nightmare. She could tell that he was still a little uncertain with the technique and that he was having some trouble utilizing it as smoothly as he would like, but even now in combat conditions he was adapting remarkably fast.

Unfortunately, Rin had been very correct in her assessment of Kakashi, he really was one seriously powerful ninja. At the very least he had been forced to put away that stupid orange book of his under the ferocity of Naruto and Sasuke's assault, but otherwise he seemed more than equipped to deal with both of them.

Sakura glances over at the alarm from her position, two minutes left, if the boys were going to provide her with an opening now was the time. And as Naruto and Sasuke jump back from Kakashi to give themselves some breathing room it seemed they had noticed the same thing.

The two boys share a glance and nod at each other, it was certainly the most civil she had ever seen them behave towards one another. Naruto then creates two shadow clones who rush Kakashi from both sides, meanwhile Sasuke's hands are quickly going through the seals necessary to perform **Phoenix Flower** jutsu. You couldn't hang out with Rin and not recognize that jutsu, it was one of her favorites.

Sasuke's was a little different though, when Rin did it, small fireballs would appear around her and shoot off like rockets at the opponent or opponents, wherever she directed them, Sasuke spat his out from his mouth. Though the technique was the same, Sasuke and Rin utilized them very differently. Rin went for mobility with hers, she could literally launch her flames in any direction, and with her sensor abilities, be very accurate, however, Sakura could tell that Sasuke's had more power behind them, but they were limited in their range to Sasuke's field of vision on where they could go.

As Sasuke completes the seals for his technique and launches it at Kakashi, Naruto's clones have attempted to grapple Kakashi into place. Kakashi quickly dispatches them and jumps back avoiding the four fireballs he launched in quick succession, each of the flames exploding against the ground, forcing Kakashi to the edge of the river. From the water four Naruto's shoot out at Kakashi, he quickly side steps the first one and then the second. The third one aims high and Kakashi has to duck to avoid it, that's when the fourth one strikes, going low and aiming for his left leg. Kakashi turns and raises his leg to avoid it.

That's when Sakura sees Sasuke charge in, he runs past the real Naruto, who had been the first Naruto to shoot out of the water, seamlessly passing the weight seal off to Sasuke who doesn't break stride at all. Now was her moment, she starts to activate her technique, releasing the first Gate, the Gate of Opening. It was the only one she'd managed so far and Guy-sensei had been furious with Lee for teaching it to her without his supervision. Once she had demonstrated that she could use it safely he had calmed down, but had stressed to her just how dangerous this technique was.

Opening the first Gate essentially made you stronger, it removed the restraints that your brain places on using your muscles. Normally you can only use about 20% of your muscles strength, your mind placing subconscious restrictions on you so you don't hurt yourself. Opening the first Gate removes those restriction allowing you to use 100% of your muscles strength. However, this was incredibly hard on the body and if done wrong you could potentially give yourself a career ending injury. Sakura knew she couldn't use it for long and that she was going to be feeling this later, but the increased strength available would make her much faster, fast enough to grab those bells with the right opening.

An opening that Sasuke had just provided. In his awkward position, Kakashi's shoulder was exposed to Sasuke who manages to place the seal perfectly, activating it as he does so. Sakura rushes forward from her hiding spot in the bushes as Kakashi is violently jerked off balance even further. He reaches for the seal on his shoulder just like she knew he would, and as he does she passes by him.

*BRRIIIIIIIIING*

*BRRIIIIIIIIIING*

*BRRIIIIIIIIIING*

The alarm goes off as Sakura shuts off the technique her muscles already aching from even that brief moment of overexertion. She no longer has the enhanced strength to maintain her speed and so Sakura loses her balance and trips, skipping across the river, barely catching herself and staying above the water. Both bells clutched securely in her hand.


	20. Chapter 19

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Glee. So, more team 7 and team 10 shenanigans this chapter, so I hope you all enjoy.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 19-xXx**

 **s**

"You seem to be in a very good mood." Megumi says with a smile to her daughter.

"I believe fantastic is the word you're looking for, I'm in a fantastic mood." Quinn laughs, "It just feels so good to be out of that cast." The mother and daughter had just left the hospital where Quinn had just had the cast on her arm removed as well as being cleared physically for active duty.

"I hate casts." Quinn sighs, gently rubbing her now free arm. "I always have."

"Always? I wasn't aware you'd been hurt before this?" Megumi asks, amused.

Quinn however felt her heart stop for a moment. Back in her old world she'd broken both of her arms, once each, as well as her left femur. The pain sucked, sure, but it was those damn casts that had really made it miserable. They had itched and smelled and were extremely uncomfortable. Luckily here, the medical jutsu that the doctors had helped speed up her recovery at a remarkable rate, however she had still been stuck in a cast for almost two weeks.

In her old world, the fastest one of her broken limbs had ever healed was four weeks and that was with just a single clean break. Her arm here had been subjected to two clean breaks and more than a few hairline fractures from the force of Mizuki's chakra enhanced kick. But with the help of medical ninjutsu her arm had been healed in less than two. Unfortunately, in-spite of having access to medical jutsu, she still had to wear a cast and she had hated every second of it.

"I… uh… I just, I hated the idea of them before all of this happened." Quinn mumbles, trying to hide her nerves. She was always so careful to never mention her other world or any experience she had back there, and while what she had said wasn't enough to worry too much about in and of itself, if she wasn't careful it could lead to some very awkward questions that Quinn would never, ever, want to answer. "It's very claustrophobic don't you think? Being restrained like that? Plus, you know, I just felt so clumsy with it on, kind of like a bull in a china shop."

"I could see that. I remember this time your father broke his leg, this was back when we were just starting to date mind you, you'd think he'd had it amputated for how much he whined and moaned about it. It was very hard to be a sympathetic girlfriend by the end of it, I'm not sure which of us was more relieved when he finally had it removed." Megumi chuckles and Quinn does too, because she could just imagine her father in that situation.

"Yeah daddy can be a little…"

"Goofy at times." Megumi says with a laugh.

"I really didn't want to be the one to say it." Quinn with a grin.

"Yes, he's the love of my life and he loves me and you girls with all of his heart but he certainly has his quirks. We all do I guess, except for me of course, I'm completely normal." Megumi says with a wink.

"…"

"You brat." Megumi laughs as she bumps shoulders with her daughter, Quinn giggles as well.

"How do you think Ino's doing?" Quinn asks after a moment of silence had settled on them. Right now Ino was with her team doing some kind of test to see if she'd actually graduated or was going to be sent back to the academy.

"Oh, I suspect that she's doing just fine." Megumi answers. "She and your father were up late last night talking about it, Ino was worried about her team placement."

Quinn nods her head, indicating that she was aware.

"Anyway, I think it helped because she looked like she was feeling much better by the time they were done. And besides, even if she is a little nervous about her placement, I've never known your sister to let anything stand in her way, when she wants something she goes for it and failure has never been an option for her, for either of you really."

"Yeah, that sound like Ino." Quinn says softly, "I just know she was disappointed that we weren't on a team together, so am I to be honest."

"This is going to be a very interesting time in your lives. Both you and your sister have always done everything together, but now with you entering the shinobi forces that's not always going to be possible. It's okay for you and your sister to miss one another and you should take every opportunity you can to spend time with each other and your friends as well, but you should also embrace this change. You both are going to meet so many new and different kinds of people, and I'll admit, some of them you'll wish you hadn't, but as for the others…" Here Megumi wraps an arm around her daughter, "They'll be the start of the kinds of friendships that will last a life time."

Quinn smiles up at her mother and squeezes in just a little closer. She can tell her mother is still really worried for her and her sister but that she was trying to stay positive for the both of them. She had worried for the both of them before, but now that the time was here and they were about to start their careers for real it seemed that her worry had multiplied. The fight with Mizuki certainly hadn't helped with that either.

On the other hand Quinn had noticed the almost physical shift Ino, Naruto, and Sakura after her encounter with Mizuki and it seemed to have really driven home to them that this wasn't a game. Not that they had taken this lightly before but it was different now, more real to them and anything that helped them survive was a good thing in Quinn's book.

They reach the flower shop that her family owned and that her mother ran. It did fairly good business, but it wasn't a huge money maker. Most of their money came through the clan and even from cuts from the pay received by Yamanaka shinobi, but it did alright and her mother loved it. Quinn didn't even bother to pretend to try and understand the nuances of inter and intra clan politics or economics. Luckily for her she was born second so all of that was going to be Ino's headache someday not hers. Quinn enjoyed the flower shop though, as did Ino, it was an easy paced and peaceful place to work where the two of them would spend a couple hours a week helping out for their allowances.

Quinn flips the closed sign to open as they step inside and then begins to go around and water the flowers, meanwhile her mother takes care of the other opening duties. Quinn had volunteered to use her last day of freedom, so to speak, helping out at the shop. Tomorrow she had her meeting with the psychologist to check on her mental state and she wanted to use the rest of the day to start training again. Thursday, she would be meeting with whoever her sensei was going to be. So she wanted to spend today doing something easy and mindless as well as spending time with her mother.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Welcome to our shop, my name is Rin how can I- Naruto, Sakura! Hey guys, so how'd it go?" Quinn asks excitedly as Naruto and Sakura enter the shop, she goes out from behind the counter to great them properly.

"We did it!" Naruto cheers as he runs up to her and hugs her. "We kicked Kakashi sensei's ass, completed the test and passed!"

Sakura smiles as she comes up to them at a more sedate pace. "I wouldn't say we kicked his ass, but we did pretty good."

"Well, tell me everything." Quinn beams as she wraps an arm around both of her friends, and leads them back to the break room. "Mom, Naruto and Sakura are here, I'll be in the back with them for a bit!" She calls out.

"Alright, don't take too long though!" Her mother calls back.

Once the three of them are all seated Quinn gets right to the point, "Alright, tell me everything, what happened, how did it go?"

Naruto leans forward eagerly but pauses for a moment before looking at Sakura, "Well… it was because of you that we passed, do you want to tell the story?"

Sakura grins at him, knowing that saying that took all of Naruto's self-control, "We did it together, go ahead, I'm just here to keep you honest."

Naruto sticks his tongue out at her before looking back at Quinn. "Alright so here's what happened-"

Quinn listened attentively as Naruto recounted their story, enjoying her friend's enthusiasm and excitement, occasionally glancing at Sakura who would roll her eyes indulgently whenever Naruto was obviously exaggerating. Although there were a couple of times when Quinn would glance over at her, sure that Naruto was exaggerating but Sakura would be nodding along. When Naruto finally got to the part where he and Sasuke distracted Kakashi one last time Quinn got a bit of surprise. She glances over at Sakura when she hears that the other girl had learned how to open the first gate and actually use it.

"Sakura, that's incredible."

"I know, right!" Naruto cheers, "She was so fast I could barely even see her move!"

"It's no big deal…" Sakura says, blushing furiously.

"Yes, it is. I haven't even been able to do it and believe me I've tried. Opening the gates is a difficult task, most shinobi never even bother to try to learn how. I'm so proud of you."

Sakura ducks her head and offers a quiet, "Thanks." Although on the inside she was screaming. Rin was proud of her!

"Better watch out Rin, we've only been on a team for like a day and already Sakura is doing awesome stuff, pretty soon we'll be stronger than you." Naruto teases.

Quinn just rolls her eyes, but she honestly hoped so. "So you got the bells, then what happened?"

 _Naruto rushes over to Sakura who is slowly making her way off the water. Kakashi has a surprised and appraising look in his visible eye as he watches them. The three of them were much more skilled than he had initially given them credit for and the fact that they actually managed to grab the bells off of him was impressive. None of the other teams had ever managed that before, at least not both of them. Still, getting the bells wasn't the real test._

 _"Alright Sakura, you have both the bells, who's passing and who's going back to the academy?" Kakashi asks._

 _Sakura looks down at the bells and smiles a soft, sad sort of smile before nodding her head resolutely. She then turns to Naruto who has reached her and hands him a bell before tossing the other bell to Sasuke. "Naruto and Sasuke pass, I'll be the one going back to the academy."_

 _"Very well-"_

 _"No!" Naruto shouts. "No, this isn't fair, we never would have gotten the bells without you Sakura!"_

 _"It's okay Naruto, really." Sakura says. "So I spend another year at the academy, yeah, it kind of sucks but I'll be fine, really."_

 _Naruto shakes his head. "No, Kakashi sensei, Sakura gets my bell I'll be the one going back to the academy."_

 _"Naruto, no."_

 _"Yes, besides it's not like I couldn't use it. I'll spend the time picking up where I kind of slacked off at and when I graduate again I'll be even stronger than ever, believe it!" Naruto says with a grin giving Sakura back the bell._

 _"But Naruto, what about your dream? You want to be Hokage someday and I can't just stand here and let you be held back."_

 _Naruto just shakes his head, "Forget it, I'll become Hokage one day no matter what, a little set back like this is no big deal, believe it! Besides, what kind of Hokage would I be if I let you make a sacrifice like this for me? You worked really hard Sakura, you deserve to graduate and to pass this test."_

 _"But so do you." Sakura says, feeling both touched and frustrated by her friend._

 _Naruto shrugs his shoulders, "Yeah, maybe, but of the two of us I'm the one who would get the most out of another year at the academy."_

 _"Not really, that's just a lot of book study, you learn best by doing, I'm the one who would get more out of it, this is a chance for you to really jump in and learn. You'll grow so much stronger now that you're on a team and-"_

 _Naruto shakes his head furiously, "No, I won't pass if you don't. You earned this Sakura, please."_

 _"No way, I'm not going to let you fail, I couldn't live with myself if I ever held you back."_

 _"Would you stop being so stubborn!"_

 _"I'm not the one who's being stubborn!"_

 _"Oh my god, would you both shut up! Here!" Sasuke shouts, grabbing their attention and tossing his bell to Naruto. "We passed because of Naruto's seal and Sakura's plan. They pass, I'll go back to the academy, if only to escape being on a team with only one of them and having to listen the other whine about it for the rest of eternity."_

 _"Sasuke, that wasn't part of our deal, we agreed you would get one of the bells, you earned it." Sakura says._

 _"Besides, I may have made the seal but you're the one who placed it… I couldn't have done that. Keep the bell." Naruto says, although the look on his face as he says this looks as if he's swallowed a mouthful of straight vinegar._

 _"Look, would you two just keep them, I honestly couldn't care less about who I'm on a team with and it obviously means a lot to the two of you to be on a team. I only have one goal, being at the academy for another year won't affect it one way or the other."_

 _Sakura and Naruto share a look, an entire conversation passing in just a glance and the two of them nod their heads in agreement. "Kakashi-sensei, I can't in good conscience accept a bell or pass if it means one of these two don't. Send me back to the academy." Sakura says._

 _Naruto shakes his head and grins, "I thought I was going to be free of that place and become a full-fledged ninja but… I can't accept a bell either if it means one of these two don't pass. Yeah, I want to pass but not if I don't like who I'm going to be if I do. I know ninjas sometimes have to do bad things, but I won't ever screw over my friends or teammates to get ahead."_

 _Kakashi looks at Naruto and Sakura and then to Sasuke who doesn't say anything but he nods his head, indicating that he's not going to accept a pass at the expense of the others, either. Kakashi gives them all a big grin, not that they could actually see his smile with his mask on. "Well then, it seems I have no choice…"_

 _Kakashi felt like he was flying high, counting these three he had tested a total of seven teams, that's a total of twenty one people. And this, this right here with these three were only ones who got it, who put each other first. Naruto and Sakura got it instinctually, Sasuke would take a little more work but even he was leaps and bounds above everyone else he had tested. "You all pass." Kakashi had to hold back a chuckle at the looks of shock on each of their faces._

 _"We pass?" Naruto cocks his head to the side in confusion, "We pass!" He cheers before wrapping Sakura in a huge bear hug and spinning her around, "We pass, we pass, we pass!"_

 _"Are you serious sensei, do we really pass?" Sakura asks, hopeful, after Naruto sets her down._

 _"Yes. The point of this test was to pit you all against each other, I wanted to see if you would look past your own selfish desires and work together to get those bells, even if it meant that one of you would have to be sacrificed for the others. And you did, you all worked together, and not only that, but not one of you was willing to let another person fail in your place, you put each other first. Even if you had gotten the bells but hadn't done that, if you had all willingly sacrificed a teammate for your own gain, I would have still failed you."_

 _"So the whole point of this was to test our… teamwork?" Sasuke asks, confused, not quite believing it._

 _Kakashi nods his head. "Whether you got the bells or not was irrelevant, it was whether or not you could all put aside your differences and your friendships to come together as a team. And you all did just that, so, you pass. Remember as a ninja the mission comes first and there may come a day when one of you must sacrifice yourselves for the good of the mission. Those who abandon their mission are considered trash of the lowest sort, however, I believe… that those who abandon their comrades are even lower than that."_

"So that's what happened." Naruto finishes with a grin.

"I like that," Quinn says, "I think that Kakashi has the right idea of it. Work together and that your team comes first, even before the mission."

"It's not exactly what we were taught in the academy is it, but you know, I like it a lot better. It feels right." Sakura says. "You were right about Kakashi-sensei too, he is strong and after today, I know Naruto and I are going to learn a lot from him."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"I'm home." Ino calls out, it was early in the evening before she was released for the day. After the test, and after she had given the antidote to Asuma-sensei he had taken them out to lunch to get to know them better, as well as to give them their work schedules.

"Ino!" Quinn shouts as she rushes over to her sister and wraps her in a big hug, "you're home! How did it go, did you pass! How were Shikamaru and Chouji, do I need to pay them a visit? I've been waiting to hear from you all day!"

Ino laughs, "It's good to see you too Rin, and of course I passed, was there ever any doubt?" Ino says with cheeky grin.

Quinn gives her a confident smile, "Of course not. So tell me what happened?"

"Sure, sure, but first, where are mom and dad?"

"Dad's still at work, and mom is closing up the shop so it's just me here right now. I was actually going to start dinner as a surprise for everyone."

"Great, I'll help."

"And you can tell me everything." Quinn adds.

"Yes, and I'll tell you everything."

The two sisters head into the kitchen and begin to prepare dinner Ino begins her story.

"Okay, so you were right when you said Daddy would know how to handle Shikamaru and Chouji. He said he had similar trouble when he first started out on a team with Uncle Shikaku and Uncle Chouza."

"Really, so what did you do?"

"Well Chouji was the easiest to handle, but Shikamaru was the most fun." Ino giggles.

 _It was two hours before Ino and her team were supposed to meet up with Asuma-sensei and have their test. Her father had told her how to handle the two boys and so Ino went to Chouji's first. She knocks on the door and bows and smiles pleasantly when her aunt Miso answers the door._

 _"Oh! Ino, how wonderful to see you dear. Are you here to see Chouji?"_

 _"Yes ma'am. And you too actually, I was hoping I could speak to the both of you. Uncle Chouza as well if he's here."_

 _"Of course dear, unfortunately Chouza has left already but please come on in. What's this all about?"_

 _"Well, as you are probably aware, Chouji and I are on a team and-"_

 _"Oh yes, little Chouji is so excited about that."_

 _"Really?"_

 _"Oh yes, he has such a… never mind. He's just excited." Miso says with a giggle and a blush._

 _"I'm excited too, but I'm also a little nervous and so I'm afraid I may have started things off on the wrong foot with him. So I wanted to clear the air between us as well as help him so that he can excel and be the very best that he can be."_

 _"That's very kind of you Ino. Why don't you have a seat here and I'll go grab him, he's probably still sleeping." Miso says with an exasperated sigh._

 _About a minute later Chouji comes downstairs with his mother, he's still in his pajamas. "Ino!? What are you doing here so early?" Chouji asks nervously._

 _"I came to clear the air between us and to work things out. We're on a team and so we need to work together to be the best that we can, don't you agree?"_

 _"Um… uh, yes?"_

 _"Great." Ino says as Chouji and her Aunt Miso both take seats across from her. "Well then let me start this off by saying I'm glad you and I can be on a team together."_

 _"Really?" Chouji asks, looking both surprised and hopeful._

 _"Yes."_

 _"Because you seemed kind of upset yesterday…"_

 _"That had more to do with Shikamaru than anything, I was frustrated and disappointed that I couldn't be on a team with my sister or friends and Shikamaru and I are like oil and water on the best of days, but that doesn't mean I was disappointed to be with you Chouji. I just let my frustration get the better of me and for that I apologize."_

 _Chouji chuckles, his tone friendly and forgiving. "No worries Ino. I mean I know I'd be disappointed if I couldn't be on Shikamaru's team."_

 _"Thank you. And now for the part that you might not like so much and why I wanted you to be here Aunt Miso."_

 _Chouji gulps nervously, knowing exactly what Ino was going to bring up while Aunt Miso looks politely curious. "Yes dear, what is it?"_

 _"It's about Chouji's diet. It needs to change from nothing but junk food to something that is going to be much more beneficial for him. But I freely acknowledge and respect that as a member of the Yamanaka clan I don't have a first hand knowledge of what an Akimichi needs to be able to perform his clan techniques. I just know that what I see him usually eat and snack on is not something that is conducive to a regular Shinobi's career, let alone a Shinobi who uses such calorie intensive techniques like Chouji does."_

 _Aunt Miso looks troubled, "What do you mean dear, I make sure he has plenty of things to eat for the day and that they are packed with proteins and healthy carbs. Why do you think there is something wrong with them?"_

 _Ino looks curiously over at Chouji and Aunt Miso follows her gaze over to Chouji who sinks into his chair with a guilty look on his face._

 _"Chouji, what's happening to the food I prepare for you?" Aunt Miso asks, her voice gentle but firm enough to show that she wanted the truth and would know if he was lying._

 _"I… I toss it out and usually snack on… other stuff…"_

 _"What kind of other stuff?" Aunt Miso asks, starting to sound a little annoyed._

 _"Um… you know, snack stuff?"_

 _"Chouji."_

 _Chouji lets out a defeated sigh. "Potato chips, small cakes, deep fried meats, candy bars, and… I'm sorry mom."_

 _"Chouji, you know better than that." Aunt Miso scolds him. "You're a shinobi now, you need to be at your best and how can that happen when you're filling up on nothing but garbage. And to lie about it as well-"_

 _Ino chooses this moment to intercede. "I think the important thing at this point is to get Chouji back on track."_

 _"Oh, he'll be getting back on track alright. There will be no more sweets for you young man you can be sure of that, and just you wait until I tell your father. I spend every morning making you delicious healthy snacks and you toss them out to gorge on junk food-"_

 _"Aunt Miso, perhaps this is a good opportunity for Chouji to learn." Ino interjects, she didn't want Chouji to get in trouble, that was counterproductive to her being here._

 _"Oh?"_

 _"Well… instead of you making meals and snacks for him, have him help you. The two of you can work out a meal plan together, that way you can oversee that he is eating healthier and he still gets to eat what he likes." Here Ino decides to throw Chouji a bone. "And you know, instead of having him quit eating sweets cold turkey why don't we wean him off. Slowly remove the junk and replace it with more nutritional options, that way it's not so hard for him."_

 _Aunt Miso nods her head approvingly. "Yes, I think that sounds doable. What do you say Chouji, does this sound fair."_

 _Chouji nods his head, "Yeah, it does. I'm sorry mom."_

 _"Chouji, dear this is about you. Our clan's techniques require massive amounts of chakra and calories to perform, if you aren't eating enough and if you aren't eating healthy enough you could seriously hurt yourself, or you could not have the energy to sustain a technique, or it might not have enough power behind it. A healthy diet is important for all shinobi but it is absolutely vital for you."_

 _"Chouji, this isn't a bad thing or a punishment, this is so you can be the very best you can be. We're a team now and we have to look out for each other. I'm not here to get you in trouble or make your life miserable, I'm here to help you and I will. Whatever you need, whatever I can do to help, I will." Ino says._

 _Chouji nods his head and gives Ino a shy and appreciative smile, "I know, thanks Ino. And you're right, I do need to work harder and… you had every right to be upset to be placed on a team with me, but… I'll try harder okay, I promise."_

 _"I know you will, I'm not worried." Ino says with a smile. "Aunt Miso, would it be okay if Chouji and I headed out, I still need to speak to Shikamaru and I'd like Chouji to be there as well?"_

 _Aunt Miso chuckles, "Well you're certainly making rounds this morning. Of course it's okay dear, and Chouji when you get home we'll start working out a new diet for you alright. One that you can enjoy and that will also give you what you need."_

Quinn bumps shoulders with her sister affectionately as the two of them chop vegetables. "Alright, so you won Chouji over. Good job on that one sis."

Ino giggles, "Chouji's alright, he's got a good heart, he just needed a push in the right direction."

"And what about Shikamaru, how did you win him over?"

Ino grins at her. "Blackmail."

 _Ino felt like her birthday had come early this year. When she and Chouji had reached Shikamaru's house and she had knocked on the door it was her Aunt Yoshino who answered the door and she looked pissed._

 _"Good morning Aunt Yoshino." both Ino and Chouji chorus together with a polite bow._

 _The scowl on her face disappears and is replaced with a genuine smile. "Good morning Chouji, and you too Ino. It's been a while."_

 _"Yes ma'am it has."_

 _"How are you and how's your family? Is Rin feeling better?"_

 _"I'm doing well and so is my family, and Rin is recovering nicely, thank you for asking. Um, Aunt Yoshino, is Shikamaru available. We have our genin test today and Chouji and I wanted to spend the morning preparing, we thought we would invite Shikamaru along as well. It's an important day for us and so we can't slack off."_

 _Aunt Yoshino looks upstairs and scowls when Ino says 'slack off,' "Oh, he's available. Please come in, I'll grab him for you." She says before heading upstairs._

 _"I think you're enjoying this a little too much." Chouji says with a quiet chuckle. "And it's really not fare of you to sick Aunt Yoshino onto Shikamaru."_

 _"I'm a ninja, since when do I have to play fair. Also, what's wrong with enjoying your work?" Ino giggles._

 _They hear a crash upstairs. "I'm up! I'm up!"_

 _Ino lets out a content sigh and Chouji rolls his eyes, their families spent most major holidays together and while they weren't the best of friends they had all grown up together so he was used to Ino and Shikamaru's antics. Usually he hung out with Rin who refereed the other two before they could ever take anything too far. Rin said that they enjoyed the fighting more than they let on and Chouji was inclined to agree._

 _"Great, what are you doing here?" Shikamaru scowls, "Hey Chouji." He adds after the fact._

 _Instead of snapping back though Ino adopts a look of contrition and hurt that even Shikamaru might have thought was real if he hadn't caught the dangerous glint in her eyes before she did it._

 _"Excuse you young man?" Aunt Yoshino growls coming up behind him. Shikamaru's back stiffens and he slightly pails as he can sense the anger radiating off of his mother, "What did you just say to a guest in MY home?"_

 _"Shikamaru… todays the day of the test, you know… and… and I thought that maybe if we got together and worked out plan that maybe we could pass. It's just that if we fail this we'll go back to the academy and we… we all worked so hard. I just want us to succeed, all of us." Ino's eyes water up, and she looks close to tears._

 _Shikamaru and Chouji both think the same thing though with very different tones, 'Evil.'_

 _"It's okay, don't cry dear. I think it's a wonderful idea you had and I know for a fact my son is going to do everything in his power to help you all pass today."_

 _"Agh, but… she-" Shikamaru stutters, aghast that his normally shrewd mother was falling for this._

 _"She and Chouji took the effort to come over here and offer to help you succeed at something you should want to do on your own, you are not going ignore that, especially after you were so rude. So go get dressed, now. If you're not out the door in ten minutes, gods help me I swear I'll-"_

 _"I'm going, I'm going!" Shikamaru yelps, taking off upstairs to get dressed._

 _"That boy, it's the most motivated I've seen him all year." Aunt Yoshino sighs, "I don't know what we're going to do with him."_

 _"Don't worry Aunt Yoshino, Chouji and I will look after him."_

 _"Thank you, both of you. And Ino, great job on the tears, they felt so real." Aunt Yoshino laughs._

 _Ino perks up, "Really, they weren't too much? I thought it might have been a bit much."_

 _"No, not at all. It really sold it. You're certainly coming along as a kunoichi. Hopefully your good habits will rub off on him."_

 _"Thank you Aunt Yoshino, that means a lot coming from you." And it did, her Aunt Yoshino had been a very powerful Kunoichi in her day._

 _"Wait… I'm confused?" Chouji says._

 _"Aunt Yoshino is a fully trained kunoichi, I knew I wouldn't fool her for a second. And since Shikamaru has… such a poor work ethic-"_

 _"That's diplomatic." Chouji laughs._

 _"Shut up," Ino scowls playfully, "Since he has such a poor work ethic, I figured a little fear to motivate him won't do him any harm."_

 _"Certainly not. His father was never like this." Aunt Yoshino says._

 _"And so he doesn't need to know Aunt Yoshino is in on it, plus I have one more card up my sleeve to ensure that he gives this one hundred percent."_

 _"Well then, I better let you get to it." Aunt Yoshino laughs before shouting upstairs. "Shikamaru! You better be down here in ten seconds or I'm coming up!"_

 _Ino and Chouji both chuckle as they hear an increase of scampering and scurrying upstairs. "You two have a great day, and please look after Shikamaru. I'm really worried about him."_

 _"We will." Both Chouji and Ino respond._

 _Aunt Yoshino gives them both a grateful smile before she leaves them be._

"Wait, hold up a second, how did you know Aunt Yoshino would play along?" Quinn asks curiously.

"Daddy. He told me that Aunt Yoshino was furious that Shikamaru finished dead last in the entire academy and that even Uncle Shikaku was really disappointed. I figured that if I showed up eager to work and get Shikamaru to come along, Aunt Yoshino would back me. I was right."

Quinn stirs the vegetables in the boiling pot. "Alright so what happened next?"

"Well-"

 _"Man, what a drag. I can't believe my mom fell for your little act." Shikamaru growls at her. The three of them having arrived at the training field an hour ahead of schedule._

 _"Oh, it's about to get worse, your days of being lazy are over." Ino smirks, "Now I have a plan to take out Asuma-sensei and you are going to follow it."_

 _"Ha! Fat chance. This is way too troublesome to worry about now. Besides we don't even know what the test will be so how can we plan for it?"_

 _"Really Shikamaru, you can't think of what our test might be, really? I mean they only recreated our parent's team, gee I wonder what Asuma-sensei could possibly want to test us on? It sure is a mystery, I mean the Ino-Shika-Chou team were capture and interrogation specialists known throughout all the Elemental Nations, but no, seriously, I wonder what we'll be tested on."_

 _"Tch." Shikamaru scoffs, because he had no real retort. She was right, it was the only possible test they could have that would make any sense. He just refused to acknowledge that she was right._

 _"Yeah, that's what I thought. Anyway, I have a plan."_

 _"And why should Chouji and I listen to any plan you come up with. You've never once beaten me in a game of Shogi."_

 _Ino scoffs, "Wow, your better than me at a board game, you must be so proud."_

 _Shikamaru scowls at the slight against his favorite game, "It's more than a board game, it's about thinking ahead, it's about predicting your opponent's moves, you know, that little thing called strategy. Kind of important. If I have to be out here then I'm going to come up with the plan."_

 _"No thanks. I'd actually like to pass this test. Now shut up and listen."_

 _"Why you-"_

 _"I- I'd like to hear what Ino has to say." Chouji interrupts softly. Ino was second in their class after all and she seemed to have a good idea of what needed to happen._

 _"Thank you Chouji," Ino says warmly causing the boy to blush, "and as I was saying, I have plan and you're going to do what I say or else I'll tell Aunt Yoshino that you purposely sabotaged our test so you wouldn't have to graduate and so you could spend another year goofing off at the academy."_

 _Chouji's eyes widen and he lets out a whistle, because damn, Ino wasn't playing around. He was glad to be on her good side. Shikamaru turns pale white. Both of his parents, not just his mom, were on his case about his academy graduation scores. If Ino told his mother that she might actually, literally, kill him and his father would help. "Y-you wouldn't."_

 _"Oh, in a heartbeat, and I would enjoy every second of it too, you lazy bastard. This is the real world we're entering, not the academy." Ino's mind flashes to her sister lying in a hospital bed after her fight with Mizuki, her face pale, body broken. Nobody took this as seriously as Rin and she had still been hurt. This wasn't a game, this was real and she wasn't going to be a part of a team that didn't take this deathly serious. "You want to slack off on your free time, fine, that's on you. But you won't do that on mine or Chouji's time and you sure as hell won't do it if it's going to be detrimental to us in anyway. This isn't a game, this is life and death. Once Chouji and I are Chunin and they split us off from you, go ahead and goof off to your hearts content. But until then, your ass is mine and it's going to work. I'm not going to let you put me and Chouji in danger because you're an asshole with no motivation."_

 _"Chouji?" Shikamaru asks, looking to his friend for support._

 _Chouji shrugs apologetically, "Sorry, I've already disappointed my mom once today, I don't want to do it again and… Ino's kind of right. I mean we need to do better, don't we?"_

 _Shikamaru lets out a defeated sigh. So much for his plan to coast along till Chunin and then finding a cushy desk job. "Alright, fine, what's your plan?"_

"After that it was easy." Ino says with a shrug. "We went to the training field, and I explained my plan to Shikamaru and Chouji and where they needed to hide once the test began. I would create an opening for Chouji and Shikamaru to knock Sensei off balance and then I would strike him with one of my poisoned blade. Once Asuma-sensei showed up, it was just like I thought, it was a capture and interrogation test against sensei and my plan worked perfectly.

I faked a fight with Shikamaru, the two of them pretended to retreat into the forest while they secretly got into position. I engaged sensei and got him into position and when the opening was available we acted. Chouji forced him into Shikamaru's shadow and that gave me the opening I needed. I got a cut in on sensei with one of my poisoned blades and didn't give up the antidote until he gave up the information we were supposed to collect."

"Ino!" Quinn laughs, both amused and slightly scandalized that she would poison her own sensei.

"What?" Ino laughs, "It wasn't a real poison, just a numbing agent. Pretty convincing though. Especially when he thought he had seen me just use the **Poison Mist Jutsu**."

"Wait, I thought you hadn't learned that technique yet. Too chakra intensive for you right now."

"Oh it is, however I found this really cool genjutsu a while back where all you have to do is use the snake and the rat sign before doing the seal sequence of the actual technique, and it creates an illusion of the technique. It's pretty convincing too, you just call out the name of the jutsu and if they aren't paying super close attention they'll think your actually doing the jutsu. Asuma-sensei moved pretty fast when he thought a cloud of miasma was making its way towards him."

"I'll bet. I'm really proud of you Ino."

"Thanks Rin, and you know what?"

"What?"

"I'm proud of me too. I've kind of had my doubts lately, like maybe I wasn't completely cut out to be a ninja but today I think I proved that I have what it takes."

"Definitely."

 **s**

 **xXx—xXx**

 **s**

 **Author's Note: Poor Shikamaru, I feel a little bad for him lol. He just wants a nice, easy, and simple life with a cushy desk job. Unfortunately for him though, the Ino in this story has absolutely no patience for laziness. On the plus side, Ino's desire to be as strong as she can is only going to help Shikamaru and Chouji in the long run. They really will end up being a force to be reckoned with in this story. As for team 7, Sasuke is discovering that working with Sakura and Naruto is a lot easier than he thought it would be. Because, while he is a more well-rounded ninja than Sakura, she is, when it's all said and done, stronger than he is and so he does respect her. And as for Naruto, he isn't the dead last in this story. Sasuke and Naruto might not get along or even like each other, but there is a grudging respect there that in my opinion didn't exist in the earlier part of the anime. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and the next one will be up next week.**


	21. Chapter 20

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 20-xXx**

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The shinobi psychiatrist could go fuck himself for all she cared. She had been dealing with everything just fine until she talked to that asshole. Quinn had just left the interview much angrier than when she had gone in. She hadn't wanted to talk about what happened at all but acknowledged that maybe she should. After all, her father had said she should, it was required of her, so why not try and get as much out of it as she could. Besides, how many times back in her old world has someone said she needed therapy anyway, though usually not with her best interest at heart?

However, after twenty minutes into her three hour interview, yes that's right, three freaking hours of that bullshit, she basically got the impression that her therapist was trying to get her to admit that she enjoyed killing and that she had purposely sought out the fight so that she could feed her blood lust. Not in those exact words, but that was the impression she got.

He asked her things like, _"Would you describe your fight as exhilarating then?"_ and _"You must have felt powerful, knowing you held control over Mizuki's life and death."_

Yeah she was done after that. Any time he asked her a question she responded with a rule from the Shinobi code.

 _"Did you feel a thrill when you engaged the traitor Mizuki?"_

She answered with Rule number 7, _"A Shinobi knows no emotion, only the mission."_

 _"You must have felt a sense of pride knowing your training has paid off, after all you took on a much more experienced opponent and won."_

Shinobi Rule number 13, _"Pride is a weakness, overconfidence will kill you as sure as any blade."_

On and on it went, she was actually worried that she was going to run out of rules to quote before her time was finally up. When she was leaving he told her that he would submit his report but that in his opinion she was cleared for active duty, and if that changed she would be informed.

Quinn just flipped him off as she left and had said, "I don't care." It wasn't so much the questions he asked as much as the way he asked them. He wasn't sympathetic to her situation, which was fine, he should be neutral. But he wasn't even robotic about it or indifferent either, every question he asked had an eagerness to it that honestly left her baffled. He masked it well, but couldn't hide it from her, not completely.

Quinn decides to head to her training spot by the river to get some real training in. Tomorrow she would be meeting with her sensei and she wanted to make a good first impression. Whoever it was had obviously thought highly enough of her to take her on as an apprentice and whoever they were they must be skilled because an apprenticeship needed to be approved by the Hokage. And she felt she knew Sarutobi-sensei well enough to know he wouldn't have just handed her off to anyone who asked.

It's as she's walking through downtown Konoha that she realizes she's being followed. Her evaluation having taken place at Shinobi Headquarters, the same building where missions were doled out and the Hokage's office was, so she had a bit of a trek to where her family's lands were.

Quinn was a sensor type, quite possibly the most powerful sensor this village had ever produced. At least if she wasn't right now she was well on her way, according to the Hokage anyway. Her abilities continued to grow and develop naturally in this area. Like with her being able to find Naruto when no one else could. It had taken her a while to locate him with how much his signature had been suppressed because of all the seals that Mizuki had laid the area with but it had only slowed her down, it hadn't stopped her. No one else was able to sense anyone in that area that night and yet she could. And she had recently discovered that if she was familiar enough with the other person's signature, so people like her parents, Ino, Naruto, and Sakura, she could actually tell you their dominant elemental affinity. Most sensors would kill to have a gift as strong as hers and yet hers was natural and still growing.

So even with her ability suppressed so she didn't feel like she was being bombarded with chakra, she was more or less aware of what was going on around her. And who ever this person was that was following her they were keeping their chakra suppressed to give the illusion of being an average person, ordinary, nothing to worry about. They were doing a good job of it too, however she could tell their chakra levels weren't naturally that low.

A person's chakra fluctuated and pulsed naturally. Even in those who couldn't actually access their chakra there was still a pulse to it, a beat of sorts. A person who was suppressing their chakra didn't have this pulse, it was always steady and even. It was unnatural. The fact that they were tailing her from the rooftops gave them away as well. Not just by the fact that they were following her from rooftop but also because when they leapt from building to building there should have been at least a small fluctuation in their chakra indicating its use, even if it was just the tiniest amount. You had to have perfect, and Quinn meant perfect, control to keep your signature steady while using your chakra.

There were other signs to indicate that this person was following her as well. Spotting a tail was a bit like wandering around like a lost drunk. You took weird turns, doubled back, stopped and sped up. Eventually a tail would have to do something to keep you in sight that would give them away. This person's tell was that their distance from her never changed. Their position around her did, but the distance did not, and she noted that it was the perfect distance for a close range assassination technique.

Quinn pauses at a clothing stall and pretends to examine some fabric while she considers her options. If she headed home she would have her mother as backup, but her mom had been out of active duty for years now and she had no idea how strong her tail actually was. She could head back to Shinobi Headquarters, but then they may give up on her and she could lose track of them. She could also meet up with her father.

He was currently in a meeting with the Hokage in his office at the "secret" T&I area of Shinobi Intelligence Headquarters. She had been sworn to secrecy as to its exact location because she wasn't technically cleared to know that information, but because her father worked there and she could sense him even through the suppression seals that were supposed to prevent that kind of thing, she knew where it was.

It would be a little hilarious if she led her stalker strait to the Torture and Interrogation center of their village. Her father seemed angry right now and with his current mood he would find out real quick what it was her tail wanted from her. But honestly, and she knew it was a little stupid of her… okay extremely stupid of her, and if she ever found out Ino, Naruto, or Sakura ever pulled something like she was about to she would kick their asses from here to Suna, but she kind of wanted a fight right now.

She was still pissed off from her evaluation and wanted to let off some steam. But, whoever this was they weren't going to make a move on her in crowded down town Konoha, where she was surrounded by allied Shinobi. She places an order for the cloth she had been holding, it was pretty enough that she didn't mind the expenditure and once she's told them where to send it, instead of turning right to go home she turns left towards the training fields.

She eventually finds her way into a deserted field where she can sense nearby shinobi in case this goes south for her. A jōnin and their genin team south of her, two chūnin training together to the east, her pursuer north of her and Konoha main to the west. She then heads out to the middle of the field and stands there, content in her evaluation that if they wanted to engage her they would have to physically reveal themselves and lose the cover that the trees would provide them. The downside to her current positon was that she was out of range of anything she could currently use for **Substitution Jutsu** , which is something she tried to avoid. Still if she was going to do this, no sense in waiting.

"Look, I don't know who you are and right now I frankly don't care. You know I know you're there, so just end this game, whatever it is and walk away." Quinn calls out.

They don't respond, instead they try and suppress their chakra even more and change their position, moving from tree to tree, hoping to hide from her but it was too late for that. She had been following their signature for long enough that they were now somewhat familiar to her. Too familiar for them to hide from her, at least in a deserted area like this. If they were still downtown, then maybe, just maybe they could have gotten themselves lost in the hustle and bustle of the crowd.

"Fine. Have it your way." Quinn says, before she dashes at full speed towards the tree that her stalker was hiding in. And the second they are in range she throws up the tiger symbol and breathes out a **Fire Ball Jutsu**. Which currently had the longest range of any of her techniques.

The figure jumps out of the way and reveals itself as they charge in at her at an incredible speed. They're cloaked in black and are wearing a plain white mask that conceals their face. They have their blade drawn and quicker than a cat could blink they thrust at her, the blade aimed towards her heart. Luckily for Quinn she had trained with the **Substitution Jutsu** with the Third Hokage so activating it was pretty much muscle memory for her and she felt the familiar tugging sensation of the technique activating.

She uses the split second where she and her replacement are crossing paths to place one of Naruto's homemade explosive tags on it. That should be a nasty little surprise for them. The explosion goes off just as she reappears in her new location and Quinn wastes no time in activating her favorite technique, the **Phoenix Flower Jutsu**. Nine little balls of flame appear around her and she launches them in rapid succession at her target.

The exploding tag hadn't hit them, they had gotten out of the way too quickly but it left them open to her **Phoenix Flower**. Even still, only two of her nine flames hit and they were only grazing shots at best. They come at her again, and once more Quinn can't help but marvel at their speed. She had never seen anyone move this fast before. However, despite this Quinn is still able to substitute out of the way again where once more she launches a stream of **Phoenix Flowers** , but this time none of them hit.

' _Not good.'_ Quinn growls internally, after only two assaults they had already picked up on her attack pattern. Whoever this person was, they were even better than she initially thought. They had adapted to her after only two attacks, she would have to switch it up.

She substitutes out of the way one more time, but instead of the **Phoenix Flower Jutsu** she activates the **Grand Fireball Jutsu** , which was her most defensive fire technique. Whereas the **Fireball Jutsu** had a lot of range to it, the **Grand Fireball Jutsu** had a much shorter range but covered a wider area. The best application of this jutsu was to create a wall of fire around yourself that your enemy couldn't penetrate.

Quinn can sense her opponent stop short just outside the flames and she uses that moment to **Body Flicker** away and up into the trees. She hides among the branches and suppresses her chakra as much as she can. She wasn't sure if she was dealing with another sensor type or not and didn't want to take any chances.

Her opponent stands perfectly still as they try to locate her and Quinn takes a moment to assess her situation. She could make a break for it and try and reach some back up but this person, whoever they were, were a lot faster than she had thought and so she gave herself about a 30, maybe 40, percent chance of actually reaching the nearby Jonin ninja. The Chunin were out, she could sense their chakra and while judging by their levels they were definitely competent, they would be no match for this assailant.

Besides she wasn't quite ready to give up just yet. She still had a couple of tricks up her sleeve and a new jutsu that Sarutobi-sensei had taught her that she was dying to try out. She just needed the time to gather up the necessary chakra. She thinks back to the day she and her friends were playing tag with the paint pellets and how Naruto had used his jacket as a lure to lead her in and pelt her. Quinn smirks, that should do it. Quinn removes her top, leaving her only in her bindings and her skirt and lines her top with three more of Naruto's tags, charging them.

She then places the top in the leaves, careful to not rustle even a single leaf until it looked like she was hiding there. She then jumps from the branch, taking care to make a small, almost accidental sound. Her opponents head snaps to their location and while Quinn body flickers back out to the middle of the field her attacker slices through her top, which then explodes, and even from her current distance she can feel the shockwave.

If she had a moment to spare Quinn would have taken the time to appreciate just how potent those tags that Naruto had made for her were. She didn't want to take advantage of him or anything but Quinn seriously doubted she would ever use a tag he didn't make again.

Quinn begins the process of converting her chakra trying to get to her threshold point as quickly as possible. Doing so made her fire techniques much easier to perform than just gathering chakra the normal way, and currently the only way she could pull off this new technique was at her threshold. Though the time it took for her to convert her chakra up to that point left her vulnerable. She manages to reach her threshold point quickly enough though and just in time too because as she's reaching it her attacker comes rushing out of the woods at her. Their cloak is charred and the mask is cracked though not broken. So her tags had done more than just distract them, good.

Her hands fly into the seals, Tiger-Ox-Snake-Rabbit-Ox-Rat-Dragon-Ox-Tiger. She then shouts out the name of the technique. It was a difficult technique and she hadn't had the time to remove any of the steps yet, "Fire style **Fiend-Fyre Jutsu**!" She then takes a deep breath feeling the super-heated chakra gather in her belly and then she releases it in one long drawn out breath.

A crimson red flame spews forth from her mouth and begins to spread out away from her and towards her attacker rapidly consuming everything in its path. The flames taking on the shapes of various beasts as it rushes away from her, the creatures twisted and angry, forming and reforming as they charge towards her target.

Her attacker is forced to go on the defensive as her **Fiend-Fire** desperately attempts to consume them. Jumping, ducking and weaving their way away from the beasts hidden within the flame. **Fiend-Fire Jutsu** was her most powerful technique. It used her chakra to create an almost living flame that burned hotter than any other technique she could produce. The flame would spread and grow as it consumed the landscape, taking on the shape of various beasts, of which she could direct and somewhat control thanks to her sensor ability which allowed her to keep track of where her opponent was.

Unfortunately for her this technique was super chakra intensive and even with her larger reserves she couldn't hold it for very long and she couldn't do it at all if she wasn't at her threshold point. She can feel her chakra levels draining and so she reluctantly cuts off the technique, ending it. She then reaches for her kunai and charges at her opponent, who was just finishing up with the last of the sentient flame before it consumed the last of its available chakra and downgraded into a normal fire which would burn itself out rather quickly. The field and nearby trees around her were burned beyond recognition, scorched to ash and stubble.

As Quinn charges in she uses some of her dwindling reserves to activate the **Phoenix Flower Jutsu** again, the small flames spinning around her before launching at her opponent like rockets, throwing them off balance as they have to jump around to avoid the flame right to where Quinn wanted them. Quinn leaps into the air and plants both of her feet into her opponent's chest and kicks with all her might knocking them down to the ground.

She uses the momentum of her kick to springboard off her opponent and into a backflip off of them and into a runner's start where she then rushes towards them again, straddling their chest, and using her legs to pin their arms down. She then brings her kunai up to their throat and press against it so that even the tiniest little motion on her part would end with their throat being slit.

"Who are you!? Why were you following me!?" Quinn snarls.

They give a light, amused, laugh, a pleasant feminine sound, indicating for the first time since this started that her stalker was a woman. "Color me impressed." She says. "I knew you were talented, but you just exceeded my every expectation."

Quinn doesn't move, but she does allow a confused look to cross her face. "Who are you?"

"Why don't you get off me and we'll discuss all of this." They say, their tone reasonable.

Quinn's features harden and she leans into her blade a little more, "Not happening, now tell me who you are."

The woman lets out a sigh, "Fine, we'll do this the hard way." The woman stops suppressing her chakra and the potency of her reserves is enough to startle Quinn, just enough for her to lose her focus and before she can even blink or think to counter she's on her stomach with their knee in her back and her arm twisted behind her as she's pinned down.

Quinn reaches for her kunai pouch with her free hand, ignoring the uncomfortable pulling sensation in her shoulder. However before she can reach one of her weapons her assailant's hand grabs hers. "Hey now, none of that. We're done okay. I apologize, it was a mistake for me to set up our meeting this way, especially so soon after your first experience in combat, but I'm kind of glad I did." They say in a soothing voice, as they slowly release their hold on her.

"You're even better than I was told." they say, taking a step back.

"Who are you?" Quinn asks, as she gets to her feet. If they wanted to talk she would talk. It wasn't like she had much of a choice in the matter. She was completely outclassed, but she still instinctively took a defensive stance, not that it would do her any good now that she could fully sense this woman's power.

They pull down their hood and remove their mask, long, luxurious purple hair cascading down, framing the face of a very beautiful woman. "My name is Yugao Uzuki and I'm your new sensei."

Quinn is startled by the revelation. "M-my sensei?"

"Yes." The other woman says with a pleasant smile.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Inoichi was currently going over Morino Ibiki's report on a shinobi runner that had been captured trying to cross the neutral zone between the lands of Fire and Lighting. Anytime there was an issue in that area the report came to him directly and he looked into it personally. The last thing Konoha wanted right now was another war to break out between themselves and Kumo.

Inoichi looks up when he hears his door open, "Sorry to intrude but I believe we have some things to discuss."

"Lord Hokage." Inoichi says, standing to show his respect, though his tone remains even and neutral. He wasn't thrilled with their leader right now and he had requested a meeting with the Third at his earliest convenience. Though he hadn't expected the other man to actually come and see him.

The Third shuts the door behind him and motions for Inoichi to take a seat before taking one himself. "I feel I owe you an apology."

"Lord Hokage I…" Inoichi pauses for a moment, "I understand and must accept that now that my daughters have graduated from the academy and are genin that they are now your soldiers to command as you will. But before that and forever, they will always be my daughters." Here Inoichi gets straight to the point and why he was not happy with the Third. "Why was Rin singled out for an apprenticeship and moreover, why was I not informed nor consulted, or even asked by the jōnin involved. Realizing that under the strictest legal sense a jōnin only needs your permission to take on an apprentice, but at her age, custom would dictate that they would speak to me and my wife about it. The fact that I had to find out from Rin herself that she was chosen for an apprenticeship and not from the jōnin involved or you and that I still have no idea who it is and that it was still approved by you, I can't help but think that I was purposely left in the dark and the reason for this is because I would not approve."

The Third lets out a tired sigh, "Having daughters is so very different than having sons, isn't it? I myself was blessed with a son and two daughters. My son, through no fault of his own, is estranged from me and it is only recently that we've begun to make amends. One of my daughters, my eldest, never joined the shinobi forces. She wanted to be a baker and so she runs a rather modest, though successful bakery with her husband. As for my youngest daughter… I was both blessed and cursed in the same way you are."

"Lord Hokage?"

"A daughter is a true blessing, as a father of two you know what I mean, you understand the light that a daughter brings into her father's life. Unfortunately, like myself, you have two daughters who are turning into exceptionally talented kunoichi. Ino, your eldest, is following in your own footsteps, almost verbatim and is in fact further along than you were at her age. She may very likely hold your job one day."

"I am very proud of the progress that Ino has made, that both my daughters have made." Inoichi responds.

"As you should be. But as talented as your Ino is, Rin is a rare prodigy and her skills have not gone unnoticed. I myself was intrigued by what I was hearing about her and decided to see for myself if what I was hearing about her was true. I am pleased to say that she surprised even me."

"Lord Hokage, please speak plainly with me. What is this all leading to?" Inoichi asks, a sinking feeling settling in his chest. He had an idea but he wanted to hear it out loud.

"Very well." The Hokage responds evenly, though Inoichi can see the sympathy in his eyes. "You as a father will, no matter how powerful they get, no matter how they may surpass you one day, you will always view them through the eyes of a father. You will always see them as yours to protect. And that's the curse of having kunoichi for daughters. Because once they graduate they become kunoichi first and your daughters second."

Inoichi's fists clench in anger because as much as he wanted to he couldn't argue that. He knew it to be true and he hated it, hated that he couldn't change it. But there was no censure in the Hokage's voice, only fact.

"Rin is a prodigy. A genius if you like, I don't know if it's natural or… or if it has to do with how she came into this world, but she has a mind sharper than most and a natural talent in picking up and mastering shinobi techniques. It was truly astounding to me how fast she picked up on what I taught her and what she has come up with on her own. Training with her, it was obvious to me that your daughter was meant to be a ninja. Please forgive the comparison but I've only ever had one student who took to my training as quickly as she did."

Inoichi scowls at that, not wanting his sweet Rin to ever be mentioned in even the same sentence as that depraved traitor. But he couldn't argue with what the Third was saying. He and Megumi had both talked about how naturally the shinobi arts came to Rin.

"But in addition to how obvious it was to see how talented she is, it was also obvious to me that she was holding herself back."

"Rin, she just wants to-"

"To protect her friends, to protect her sister. I know, I was very impressed with how dedicated she was to that idea. And that idea, that desire to protect her sister and her friends, has both pushed her and held her back. No matter how hard her sister and her friends trained they were always one step behind Rin. Am I correct?"

Inoichi reluctantly nods.

"She probably isn't even aware that she is doing it, but she has kept herself at her friends' level in order to help them excel. And it worked, Ino and Sakura Haruno are both barely out of the academy and already at a chūnin level of skill in some areas and incredibly talented for genin in others. And Naruto went from the very dead last in his class to the top fifteen and he has even begun to pursue the sealing arts and is showing quite an aptitude for it as well. And while their own hard work in reaching their current level is to be praised, it was Rin, sacrificing her own growth to assist them that allowed them to reach the heights that they have."

The Third Hokage leans slightly forward, "She would already be in active service if she hadn't turned down the opportunity to graduate early. She didn't even hesitate and I knew she wouldn't the moment I gave the approval for the academy to offer it to her. I knew that Rin would choose her sister and her friends over her career and she wouldn't lose a second of sleep over it. Rin has no ambition as a ninja other than to protect those important to her."

"I remember that day." Inoichi chuckles softly, "She…" he shakes his head fondly, "She just rolled her eyes when I asked about it and said she would graduate soon enough and that she was in no hurry. I was proud of her for that." Inoichi says, his voice slightly defiant. "That she would choose her sister and her friends over her career."

"I agree. But that time is over. To place Rin on a team, a standard genin team, would stunt her growth. She would slow herself down so that she could continue to be at the same level as her teammates so that she could help them excel. A traditional genin team," here the Hokage shrugs, "It wouldn't be enough for her, at least not enough to help her truly grow. She's ready for active duty, her fight with Mizuki proved that. Only inexperience on her part and the presence of Naruto and an injured Iruka made that fight more difficult for her than it should have been."

"Rin needs a more advanced setting. An apprenticeship, a one on one teacher to student interaction that can propel her to the heights she is capable of but won't allow herself to currently reach. And so for the good of the village, for the good of Rin herself, I asked a favor of one of my ninja to consider taking Rin under their wing."

"Who?"

"Yugao Uzuki."

"She agreed?!" Inoichi asks, shocked. Yugao Uzuki along with Might Guy and Kakashi Hatake were the strongest active jōnin in the village. Which one actually was the strongest was a matter of hot debate in the lower ranks. "I thought she was serving in the ANBU forces."

"She was, but for personal reasons that I am not inclined to share she has agreed to take on Rin as an apprentice. And so I have granted her a leave of absence from the ANBU forces to do so."

"You want to fast track her." Inoichi says, it's a statement of fact, not a question. And as he says it he can feel the heaviness in his chest increase tenfold.

"Yes. And I should tell you that even as we speak, Yugao is making first contact with Rin."

"I thought the meeting wasn't set until tomorrow." Inoichi says in a defeated voice. Fast tracking a shinobi was basically rushing them through the ranks and into active duty, it often ended up being emotionally and psychologically scarring to the shinobi involved, but it was considered at times a necessary evil. He had always been vehemently opposed to the concept but was never able to do anything about it because the results were all too often successful in fulfilling the needs of the village. Even at the expense of the shinobi. He had thought, had hoped, that because of what happened with the last Shinobi to be fast tracked that the program would be ended. The last shinobi being Itachi Uchiha who ended up murdering his entire clan.

"Before Rin graduated I had Yugao complete one more mission for me, she wasn't due back until tomorrow but she finished early and so wanted to get started right away. Inoichi, I want you to watch this. Not with the eyes of a father, but with those of a ninja." The Third says gently before his hands clap together, " **Crystal Viewing Jutsu.** " He then places his hands on Inoichi's desk and there is a small flash of chakra and when it disappears a crystal ball is sitting on his desk and inside of it he can see is his daughter Rin.

"Watch her Inoichi, watch your daughter. See how she moves through the crowded streets. Seemingly without a care in the world, but she knows, she's aware she's being followed. Yugao is quite simply the best in this area and yet your daughter has still picked her out. Her sensor abilities and her own skills are coming to bare. Watch how she moves, every stop, every turn, every step is done with deliberate action. No move is wasted, she's gathering intel on her tail and you would never even know it."

Inoichi watches as his daughter marks her tail and then leads them to an empty training field. He then watches as Rin engages them in combat. He always knew that Rin was more combat oriented than her sister, but he had never seen her go all out like that. Every move she made was planned and executed with perfect precision. She knew exactly what she was doing and when her first plan didn't work she adapted. There were a couple of things that a more experienced shinobi would have done differently, but that experience would come in time. All in all she was engaging her opponent at a level well beyond what any genin would and even some chūnin. Inoichi watches in awe when he sees the destructive power of her final fire release technique.

"I taught her that just before her graduation. As a gift to her, so she would have a technique with real power behind it. But it was also a test, one that you can see she has passed with flying colors. That technique you just saw her use is an A-Rank Kinjutsu that I developed myself called the **Fiend Fyre Jutsu**. The flames feed off the user's chakra to come to life, gaining a will of their own. It is a difficult technique for even me to control but look at her. It's hard on her reserves but the flames obey her every whim. And the funny thing is, for any other ninja her proficiency with that technique would be more than enough, but I know your daughter, I know Rin, for her, what she's capable of now still isn't good enough."

He then watches as Rin abruptly ends the technique and in a matter of seconds pins her opponent. "Enough." Inoichi says and the Third ends the technique, the crystal ball disappearing. "What are your plans for her?" The Third was right, if she wasn't his daughter even he would agree she needed to be fast tracked. Even he could see that, as much as he wished otherwise.

"It is my hope that within the year she will have passed the chūnin exams and will have accepted an offer to join the ANBU ranks."

"Does she have a choice?" Inoichi snarls, standing up and pacing. He wasn't opposed to his daughters being shinobi, and he wasn't even opposed to them serving in ANBU, though he would caution any ninja considering it to think carefully. If a ninja's life was among the shadows, then ANBU was darkness itself. A normal shinobi faced a lot of death and destruction but compared to those who served in ANBU, everyone else lived in the light. If choosing to serve that way is where his daughters ended up he would support it one hundred percent, but it had to be their choice and from where he was standing it didn't seem like his Rin was getting one. Something about all of this just didn't feel right, but he couldn't place his finger on it.

"Of course she does. I've told Yugao to be completely upfront with Rin about it and you have my permission to speak with her about this as much as you and she wish. But we both know that she will do this, that she'll accept the offer. She wishes to protect her friends and preserve their innocence. She'll do it so they don't have to."

"You son of bitch." Inoichi growls. Upfront with Rin or not, it was manipulation at its finest. The offer would be made in such a way that even with Rin being aware of it, it would push every button she had, agitate every anxiety. She would know what was happening and allow it to happen anyway.

The Third bows his head as he rises and heads to the door. He pauses there for a moment and when he speaks his voice is gruff, full of held back emotions. "You and I are both blessed and cursed Inoichi. We were blessed to have daughters in our lives and cursed that they have exceled in the shinobi arts. My youngest daughter, the one who became a kunoichi. She died in the last war, it was a suicide mission to destroy a bridge that was essential in resupplying enemy forces. I sent her on that mission myself, knowing full well that she likely wouldn't make it back, but her and her team were the best suited for the job. And so… I gave the order. We are shinobi and above that we are leaders in this village, we don't have the luxury of being fathers first."

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 **Author's Note: This was a really difficult chapter for me to write in terms of just telling this story. Up until now I've had a couple of different ways that I was considering taking this story but I couldn't quite decide on which direction to take it, in writing this chapter, for good or ill, I finally had to commit to a path. Rin/Quinn's story has just taken a very dangerous turn, and things have finally been set into motion. One of the things that was really important to me when I started writing this story is that it wasn't just a retelling of the anime with a new character added to the bunch. I wanted there to be an over-all arching story that was being led up to. This chapter and the next are extremely important to the over-all story, and so I truly hope you all do enjoy it.**


	22. Chapter 21

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto. So, a rather large author's note at the end, nothing important really, just some musings on some of the logistics of the Naruto-verse, please feel free to read it or ignore it at your leisure.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 21-xXx**

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"Who are you?" Quinn asks, as she gets to her feet. If they wanted to talk she would talk then. It wasn't like she had much of a choice in the matter. She was completely outclassed, but she still instinctively took a defensive stance, not that it would do her any good now that she could fully sense this woman's power.

They pull down their hood and remove their mask, long, luxurious purple hair cascading down, framing the face of a very beautiful woman. "My name is Yugao Uzuki and I'm your new sensei."

Quinn is startled by the revelation. "M-my sensei?"

"Yes." The other woman says with a pleasant smile.

"Oh crap." Quinn says quietly to herself, "I- I am so sorry ma'am. I-"

"No, don't apologize, please-"

"You must think I'm a complete idiot, leading an unknown assailant into the middle of nowhere, engaging them in combat. I- this… this is not the first impression I wanted to make on you and-"

"Rin. It's okay, really. Here." Yugao says, reaching into her pack and pulling out plain grey shirt. "Put this on, we'll get some lunch and we'll just talk. Alright?"

"Yes ma'am, right away." She says quickly putting the shirt on.

"And you can cut it out with the whole _ma'am_ thing, I am not nearly old enough to be a ma'am." Yugao says with a pleasant laugh, "Why don't you call me Yugao-sensei or just sensei as you prefer and I'll call you Rin. Would that be acceptable?"

"Yes ma'am-I mean Yugao-sensei."

"Perfect, so is there anywhere in particular you'd like to eat? My treat." Yugao says.

"Um…" Quinn's mind goes blank for a moment and so she blurts out the first place that comes to mind. "Have you ever been to Ichiraku's?"

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"Huh, I didn't take you to be the kind of person who liked ramen." As the older woman takes a look at the ramen stand they had just reached.

Quinn lets out a little laugh, "Yeah, you can't hang out with Naruto and not come to have an appreciation for the stuff and this stand makes the best ramen in the entire village."

Yugao gives her an amused look, "The entire village huh, so you've tried them all have you?"

"Me, no. Naruto, definitely. And I choose to take his word for it. Besides there are other reasons to come here." The father daughter duo who ran the place were friendly and the daughter, Ayame, was really cute. Quinn had allowed herself to have bit of a crush on her which was nice since she was an adult Quinn didn't have to feel too guilty about it.

"Well then, shall we."

The two of them enter the stand and take their seats, where they are greeted by Teuchi the owner of the establishment. He takes their orders and brings them both a water while they wait for their food to be done.

"So, I guess I should get this ball rolling." Yugao says, "My name is Yugao Uzuki and I am to be your new sensei. I like moon gazing, the color yellow, plain steamed rice with soy sauce, and of course my boyfriend, and not in that particular order." She says with a light laugh and Quinn smiles back politely. "I dislike most sweet foods and can't stand arrogant people, though I do admire confidence, and learning the difference can be difficult. My goal for the future and in being your sensei… well we'll get to that a little later."

"I guess I should go now, then… um… let me think" Quinn says nervously, "…wow this is kind of hard."

"No it's not, you're just worried that this is some kind of test, it isn't. Just tell the truth, what do you like, what do you dislike, and what are your goals for the future?" Yugao says kindly.

Quinn nods her head, "Alright, first and foremost I love my family and my friends and any time I can spend with them is something I enjoy. It doesn't really matter to me what we do as long as it's together. My favorite food is gyudon, though I don't eat it often. I dislike laziness and… if you're going to be my sensei then full disclosure. I don't really want to be a ninja, I hate the very concept itself and I have no ambition in it either. I don't wish to be Hokage one day, I don't care if I ever even make jōnin, there's no department I wish to head. The only thing I care about is that I am strong enough to protect my family and friends.

I will admit that there are things that I like about ninja training, I enjoy the athleticism of it, growing stronger and learning new techniques can be fun, and I find learning about chakra and how to use it to be very fascinating. But if I didn't have to protect those I love, I would quit this life and never look back. I'm twelve years old and I am already responsible for the death of another human being, and in the future I may be responsible for the deaths of many more. I'm not okay with that and I will never be okay with that, but I recognize it's the world I live in and it's the life I've chosen and that those who are most important to me have chosen it as well."

"Fair enough." Yugao says, "Actually this makes it a little easier on me. If you have no ambition in the shinobi world then let me offer you one."

Yugao stops at that moment, her eyes flickering over to Ayame who brings them their dishes. The two women thank her, and Ayame gives Quinn a playful wink. "Will Naruto or any of the others be showing up later, Sakura, your sister, I'd like to know if we should start prepping for them now?" Ayame says with a smile.

"Knowing him, probably. Not sure about the others though." Quinn laughs, "But I'm not expecting any of them."

"And who is this?" Ayame asks, pleasantly.

"Oh, forgive me, Ayame this is my new sensei Yugao Uzuki. Yugao-sensei this is Ayame."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Yugao says.

"Likewise, Rin and her friends are regulars here, so I hope we'll be seeing a lot more of you."

"Well if the food is as delicious as Rin has told me then I'm sure you will."

"Fantastic, well then, if you all will please excuse me, I've got to get back to work. Enjoy your meal."

"It's a friendly staff, I can see why you like it here." Yugao says as Ayame leaves, noting how Rin's eyes followed the older girl's retreating form.

"Like I said, there are other reasons to come here besides good food."

"The girl is cute." Yugao says conversationally, but her voice is just a little too casual.

But Quinn can only manage a sad smile in return. She may look twelve, but she wasn't. And honestly, with her secret, Quinn had just accepted the fact that she wouldn't be able to have a real relationship. How could it survive if the person she was with didn't know the truth, it would all be based on a lie. A lie about who and what she was. She didn't want to have a relationship based on a lie, she'd done that before and it had hurt everyone involved. No, a one sided crush that nothing would ever come of was the best that she could hope for. "Yeah… she is." Quinn says softly.

They eat their meal in silence after that and when they finish Yugao pays and then motions for Quinn to follow her. She leaps high into the air and Quinn follows after her, the two of them jumping from rooftop to rooftop, throughout the city until coming to a stop on top of a building across from Shinobi Headquarters. From up there Quinn could see all of the various clients and shinobi coming and going from the building.

"You told me that you have no ambition in your career as a shinobi other than to protect your family and friends, what if I could offer you just that? Would you take it?"

"I'm here aren't I?" Quinn responds.

"True. Take a look around you, tell me what you see."

"I see Konoha. I see people, going about their lives, shinobi and civilian alike."

"You're a sensor type, tell me, where are your sister and your friends?"

Quinn closes her eyes and in a matter of seconds locates each of them. Quinn gives a small laugh. "Ino is at a grocery store six blocks south from here with her team, Naruto and Sakura are… in the West Park. None of them seem particularly happy right now, although the jōnin with them are very amused."

"D-Rank missions. Little more than chores if you just look at them at face value. Picking up groceries, walking dogs, picking up trash. Cheap community work and good PR. Civilians see ninja's doing good work around the village and it helps to humanize us to them. We seem more approachable. It's all very innocent wouldn't you agree."

"It would seem so, yes."

"But even D-Rank missions serve their purpose in training young shinobi. But they don't get it, they see things like picking up groceries as a waste of their skills. They view it as an insult to all their work in the academy. They don't realize that the only difference between a D-Rank mission where they have to bring someone their groceries and an A-Rank mission where you're running supplies behind enemy lines is the number of people trying to kill you. Still, I think it's nice. It's nice that they have the option of doing something that is seemingly so menial and so safe, so innocent. They won't appreciate it now, but give it time and a couple more dangerous missions and by the time they reach jōnin they'll miss the days when carrying groceries is all they had to do."

Quinn isn't sure what to say to this so she says nothing, instead just waiting for her sensei to continue with wherever this was going.

"Tell me Rin, how long do you think it will be before your friends are in active combat, fighting, killing, possibly dying? Most jōnin-sensei like to give it a few months, you know. Three to four months of easy D-Rank missions and team training before they'll even consider doing a C-Rank mission. But you're sister and friends are talented, at least according to their records. Time will tell if that's truly the case, but if it is, how long do you think they'll stay like this, picking up groceries and cleaning up trash? It won't be long. You say that you aren't okay with being responsible for the death of another, tell me, how okay will you be with it when it's your sister's turn?"

Quinn bows her head at that because of just how hard that hits home for her. "She… I… I never wanted this life for her. I tried to get her to be something else, but she didn't want that. She wanted to be a ninja, so I became one too, so that I could protect her. So that I could help her have as safe and normal a life as possible."

"You can't protect her from this, someday soon, within the next year she'll either be in a position where she'll have to take another life or she'll be dead and your innocent sister will be gone either way, and in her place will be either a corpse or a killer, just like you. Just like me. Just like every other ninja in this village."

Quinn flinches at that.

"You can't be with her 24/7, you can't be with any of them all of the time and that would be the only way to actually protect them. And even then, it wouldn't be a sure thing. Once you become a ninja it is only a matter of time before you take a life. And no matter how justified it is, it changes you."

"So all of this is pointless then, all of it, my becoming a ninja, my getting as strong as I can, you're telling me it was for nothing!" Quinn cries, "I don't believe that, if people truly care for one another then they can find a way to be there for one another… they can protect each other… I can protect them… I can."

"Yes, you can." Yugao says.

Quinn looks up at her after she says that, "I thought you said I couldn't protect them. That's what you said, that within the next year that Ino will go through what I am."

"And she will, you can't protect her from that, not the way that you want to anyway. But you can still be there for her, you can protect her from the worst of what this life has to offer. And not just her, but all of your friends, your family, this entire village. You can protect them."

"What are you talking about?"

"When I became a genin, when I first graduated, we were in the middle of a war. Do you think that I had the opportunity to go on any D-Rank missions? No. Like you I was given the opportunity to graduate early, unlike you, I went through with it. By the time I was your age I had already taken on six assassination missions, that's six premeditated deaths that I was responsible for and that's not counting the people I had to go through to complete the mission and take out my targets, nor does it count the people I'd killed as a result of combat. You can't save them from the shadows, when your sister and friends decided to become ninja their paths were set, but you _can_ save them from the darkness. You can help maintain and protect this world that allows your sister and your friends to do D-Rank missions, where they have the chance to hold onto their innocence for as long as possible. Where there is no war for them to fight and they can grow up in relative peace."

"How?"

"By sacrificing yourself. This peace you live in is maintained by a select few who sacrifice everything, who turn themselves over to the darkness itself, so that those they love can at the very least spend some time in the light. Tell me, Rin Yamanaka, would you kill so that your sister didn't have to? Would you sacrifice your mind, your body, your happiness so that your sister and your friends could keep theirs?"

Quinn's voice is shaky and she hates herself for hesitating but she manages to choke out a broken, "Yes."

"There was hesitation there, good. It means you actually understand everything that I am telling you. Any fool can say they'll sacrifice everything for those they love, but it's a rare few who understand what that can truly mean. You want to protect those you love, good, and you can. But it will cost you everything. Will you pay that price, will you give everything for them, for your sister, for Naruto, for Sakura? Will you pay the price necessary to protect them, with no chance of even a thank you, without them ever even knowing what it is you will do for them?"

Quinn hates that there are tears in her eyes, but she can't help it. This was all too real for her, she knew that Yugao wanted something from her and was playing on every fear and anxiety she had. But it was working because Quinn was here and was willing to listen. "What do you want from me?"

"I'm here because you are the most talented ninja to pass through the academy in years. You've caught the eye of many major players in this village, not the least of which is the Hokage himself. What do I want from you? I want you to listen to the offer I'm about to make and I want you to seriously consider it. I want you to know fully what it is I am asking of you, what it is the village wants from you, I want you to know and understand what you will be asked to sacrifice, and then I want you to remember who it is done for… and then I want you to accept."

"You haven't made an offer yet." Quinn's voice quivers.

"Then I'll make it here and now. I'm here to offer you a place in the ANBU black-ops forces."

"I… I'm sorry, I must have misheard you, I thought you just offered me a spot in ANBU?"

Yugao gives her a sad smile, "I did. And I'm sorry to say that I think you would thrive there. I wasn't sure about this when I was first asked to teach you. But after our fight, after hearing you talk about being a ninja and why you became one in the first place, I don't know that there is any other place for you."

"This is a joke right, I mean, I'm just a genin. How could I even qualify, don't you have to be at least a chūnin or special jōnin to join?"

"Not entirely inaccurate. You do need to at least hold the rank of chūnin to be accepted into ANBU. Though it's a common misconception that you just _join_. You don't join ANBU, you're recruited. Rank is all but irrelevant, it's skill that matters and after our fight, there's no way you can look me in the eye and say you're _just_ a genin."

"You still won though, I mean you beat me in the end and…"

"And I have a lot more experience than you, but experience is something that you can only gain with time. That's why I agreed to be your sensei, to help you gain the experience needed to survive in the ANBU ranks. You and I will go on missions together, I'll help train you in areas where you are lacking and then you will take the chūnin exams. Once you've completed the exams a spot will officially be offered to you within the ANBU ranks. It's called being fast tracked. When a ninja, such as yourself, shows the kind of talent that you do they are rushed through the ranks so that they can go where the village needs them most. In your case, that happens to be in ANBU. With my own sensor abilities I was the best tracker that ANBU had and yet without the experience or even the amount of training that I have had, your gift puts mine to shame. I wasn't half-assing it when I was stalking you. I treated you like I would any target that I was trying to hide from and you still picked me out. There are ninja out there who would literally kill to be able to do to me what you did, who died because they couldn't."

"What if I decide to turn down the spot? What if I don't want to join ANBU?" Quinn asks softly.

Yugao gives her a sympathetic smile. "Then I'll still train you through the chūnin exams and once you're made chūnin, I'll return to ANBU once more and you'll join the regular shinobi forces. And who knows, maybe you'll make a difference there, maybe not. Just know this, in ANBU you _will_ make a difference."

Quinn is silent after that, her mind racing at the offer she had just been made and what taking it would mean. But it was such a shock to her, ANBU, there had to be some kind of mistake. It wasn't something she was suited for, she knew that. And yet, if it offered her the chance to protect Ino and those she loved… how could she turn it down?

"I… I-"

"Why don't you head home for the day." Yugao interrupts. "It's a lot to take in, speak to your father and your mother. Consider everything that I've said, what I haven't said, and your own feelings on the matter. We'll meet at training ground 14 at 0800 tomorrow. For real this time, and we'll officially start your training."

Quinn nods her head distractedly, her mind still racing a mile a minute, "Yes sensei."

And with that Yugao takes off, disappearing from the roof. Quinn follows her with her abilities for a few moments before suppressing them again, allowing the other woman to disappear. She then takes a seat next to a water tower that was on the roof, leaning against it, and then does her best to make sense of today.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Quinn ended up staying on that rooftop for the rest of the day. The fight with Mizuki playing over in her head, followed by her encounter with Yugao. In fact, everything that she had ever been through was playing itself over and over in her head. From the car crash that led to her being here, to the kyuubi attack, and the Uchiha massacre. Her decision to become a ninja in the first place and all of the training that had followed. The training she had done with the Third and wondering if this had been his plan for her from day one, all of these things and more were playing over and over again in her mind, trying to connect the dots that had led her to this moment.

"Hi daddy." She says softly, as she senses him land on the roof beside her. Quinn doesn't look up at him, instead keeping her gaze fixed on the village and the setting sun.

"I'm sorry I couldn't come to you sooner, I take it the offer has been made." He says, his voice gentle.

Quinn nods her head.

Her father takes a seat beside her and places an arm around her and she leans into him. "I'm sorry, I didn't find out about this until today. I don't know that I could have stopped it, but I would have tried. You don't deserve to have this kind of decision placed on you and certainly not this early, no one does."

"We talked about me finding my own shinobi way… maybe this is it?" Quinn says softly, "Maybe this is the only path open to me."

"I don't believe that for a second. Your path is whatever you choose it to be."

"Yugao-sensei said that she doesn't think there's any other place for me, I wonder if she's right. I don't… I mean I'm not like Naruto, I don't have any grand dream of being Hokage one day. I'm not like Ino or Sakura either, I don't care about being a ninja, not like they do. Being a ninja was just a means to an end."

"If you could be anything in the world, what would it be?" Inoichi asks, he had spent so much time worried about Rin not wanting to be a ninja he hadn't really stopped to think about what she would want to be instead.

"It's really stupid but… an actress." Before she had died she had wanted to study drama at Yale. Act for a few years, maybe direct or write. She wasn't the performer that Rachel, Kurt, and even Santana had been but she thought that it would be something she would like and be good at and the more time she spent considering it the more she had fallen in love with the idea.

"I didn't know that. And it's not stupid at all." Inoichi says.

"I've only ever told one other person." Quinn says with a shrug, referring to when she had told Rachel she had gotten into Yale.

"So why don't you?" Inoichi offers, "I think you'd be great at it."

Quinn smiles the first smile she's had since the offer was made. "You think so? I could make movies, maybe star in plays. See the world, entertain millions of people. It's not a bad way to live, is it?"

"I wouldn't think so."

Quinn shakes her head. "No… that won't ever be me."

"It could if you wanted it to be."

"No, it may sound stupid, considering how long you've been doing this and how much you've seen comparatively, but for me I've seen too much to ever go back."

"It doesn't sound stupid at all. You would likely face this decision one day anyway but it shouldn't be now, it shouldn't be right after you've graduated or right after you've had your first kill. It's too much at once, you deserve time to find your ground."

"Daddy, do you… do you think I'd be good at it though? Do you think that if I do this that I'll make a difference? If I do this… would I really be protecting Ino and the others?"

Inoichi sighs, "In a way… yes. ANBU take on the missions that no other shinobi can or will. They sacrifice everything for the village and they do, they truly do make a difference. To serve in the ANBU forces, to even be offered a spot is a real honor. But Rin, this isn't the only path open to you. You don't have to sacrifice yourself to save everyone, you don't. And believe me joining ANBU is a sacrifice. I would caution any shinobi who is offered a spot to think carefully before joining, even if they had the years of experience that you don't under their belt. It's… it's not for everyone, no matter how skilled they may be."

"That's the problem… I don't know if it is right for me, but in that same breath, I don't know that it's not right for me. Other than protecting the other's I don't know what I want out of this life… maybe ANBU is the right choice, if it gives me the opportunity to do that…"

"There are other ways to help Rin. If you want to protect others you could always join the Medical Corp. or you could even join Intelligence. I happen to know for a fact the head of that department is always looking for skilled shinobi." Her father says with a playful grin.

"Hmm… I think we want to avoid blatant nepotism for now at least," Quinn says with a small giggle, "and… I don't have the control necessary to excel at medical Ninjutsu. I can do them, but… not very well, not well enough to make it a focus or ever be truly good at it, I don't have a passion for it."

The two of them sit together in silence and continue to watch the sunset together. The golden rays reflecting on them. Finally it's Inoichi who breaks the silence. "All I want for you Rin is your happiness. That's all I have ever wanted for you."

"Daddy, if… if you weren't my father, if I wasn't your daughter and I were just some random kunoichi, what advice would you give me?"

"You're not though." Inoichi says softly, "You are my daughter, and you will always be my daughter. It's not possible for me to view you otherwise. I was there when you were born, I was there for your first steps, your first words. I taught you how to control your gift, I was there the first time you climbed a tree with just chakra. I taught you how to throw a kunai and shuriken, I showed you your elemental affinity. I watched you as you laughed, I held you as you cried. I am your father, now and for always. I can't look at you as anything other than my daughter."

"Please?"

Inoichi doesn't say anything for a moment as he carefully weighs the words he wants to say in his mind. When he does finally speak his voice is even and gentle. "The Hokage stopped by my office today and he allowed me to view your fight with Uzuki. You are an incredibly gifted kunoichi. Everything you did, every move you made had a purpose. You can't just teach that. It's something instinctual or gained through years of experience. Watching you, I couldn't believe that my daughter was already so far along. I always knew you were strong Rin but to see it in action was… something else entirely."

"I don't know what I should do." Quinn says, her voice slightly cracking.

"You don't have to decide anything today." Inoichi says before placing a kiss to Rin's forehead. "Sleep on it, keep talking with me about this as you need, follow your instincts, and more than anything else, know that I love you no matter what."

"I love you too." Quinn whispers.

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 **xXx—xXx**

 **s**

 **Author's Note: So the offer has been made and now Rin/Quinn has a huge decision to make. In regards to ANBU, I don't think most shinobi ever spend any time in there. Like, every military personnel faces dangers in their jobs, but only a small fraction of them serve time in the Special Forces. And that's what ANBU is for ninja, it's their version of Special Forces, and I don't think it's something you just join. I mean, I guess a shinobi could put in an application and it could be reviewed, but I think for the most part you have to be recruited, kind of a don't call us, we'll call you kind of thing.**

 **A stab in the dark guess from me, I think that maybe 5% of the shinobi forces are in ANBU or have served in ANBU. Going into the logistics of the hidden villages is a pain in the ass lol. Because we never really get a sense of how many ninja there really are. Konoha for example seems to fluctuate between a handful of shinobi to an approximate 13,500 shinobi that they contributed to the shinobi alliance, assuming that the 80,000 total was an equal contribution from Fire, Water, Lightning, Wind, Earth, and Iron.**

 **What that means for this story is that while Ninja forces are the most revered and usually the most influential aspect of a nation's military might, they only make up anywhere between 15% to 35% of that nation's military power. The other 85% to 65% is made up of soldiers and Samurai that the various Lords of the land can call to arms. Which to me means that there has to be other Shinobi bases and possibly even sub-hidden villages throughout each country, not just Konoha, Kumo, Suna, etc., each of them providing their own ninja, and the sub-villages themselves subservient to and answering to the main village and it's Kage.**

 **Larger villages, such as Lightning, which is the largest of the hidden villages, contribute around 35% of their land's military power. A smaller village such as Grass contributes about 15% of its land's military forces. Konoha and its various holdings produce about 25%. The logistics are crazy evil to figure out but I'm trying to reconcile the handful of shinobi trying to find Naruto and the forbidden scroll at the beginning of the series to the near countless shinobi of the shinobi alliance at the end of the series. Like I said, their numbers seem to drastically fluctuate. Of course this is all conjecture and we don't really know because Naruto as a story was more character driven not world driven, so I guess it doesn't really matter. Kind of fun and interesting to think about though, in my opinion.**

 **And finally I got the 13,500 Konoha ninja by dividing 80,000 by 6, one for each of the main villages and the land of iron and then rounding that answer up to 13,500. This means that Konoha currently has around 675 ANBU. Not sure how accurate this is, but that's what I've worked out. If any of you think differently, or even better, know differently, please let me know, I love this kind of stuff and I think it helps me write a better story.**


	23. Chapter 22

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 22-xXx**

 **s**

Ino takes a moment to mentally prepare herself before entering their room. Rin was already inside, having gone to bed a little early but Ino knew she wasn't asleep. Her sister was troubled about something which meant she would lie there quietly for hours until finally drifting off into an uneasy slumber. Her parents knew what was up, that much she was certain of. Dinner had been pretty standard and they had talked about their days and things as usual. Except there was an undercurrent of tension at the table and the fact that Rin, who didn't talk much anyway was quiet about her day, even for her.

For some reason Rin had been obsessed with how Ino's day had went. She wanted every little detail, every little complaint, she wanted to know everything. So Ino had answered, and happily. Counter interrogation 101 you could learn just as much about your interrogator by the questions they ask you as they could about you by your answers. Rin wanted to know about her day and would always change the subject when asked about her own. Simple answer, Rin was worried about her for some reason and something big had happened today.

Her father was also worried as well as angry about something that had to do with Rin and her mother was anxious. Something happened to her sister today and it was time to find out what. Over the years Ino had discovered that the key to talking with Rin about anything personal was to give her space and let her brood on it on her own for a while. Once she had thought on something long enough and had the chance to at least think about it by herself, then her sister would open up. You couldn't prod her or push her though, that was the quickest way to get Rin to clam up, but if you were patient with her and you showed her that you could be trusted and that you weren't going anywhere. That you were willing to wait for her to speak, and do it on her terms, then Rin would open up to you.

Ino steps into the room and quietly closes the door behind her. Rin is in her bed, on her side and facing away from her and she is visibly tense. Ino goes over and sits by her sister and then slowly begins to pet her hair. A calming action that causes Rin to visibly relax. "So you heard all about my exciting day of grocery shopping, now what about you? What happened today?" Ino asks, her voice gentle and calm.

Rin takes a deep breath and shrugs, "Nothing really."

Ino rolls her eyes, grateful that Rin couldn't see. She doesn't say anything in return, she just continues to stroke her sister's hair. Rin had classic symptoms of severe abandonment issues, Ino couldn't for the life of her figure out why, but her sister was terrified of being abandoned. Getting her to speak was a waiting game, showing her that you weren't leaving, but it still surprised Ino that it was taking her sister as long as it was to open up. Ino could usually get her talking in about ten minutes but it was close to the half an hour mark before Rin finally rolled over to face her, finally ready to talk. Whatever was going on was really bothering her.

"I met my sensei today." Rin says quietly.

Ino frowns, she didn't like not knowing who would be training her sister. "Who is it?"

"Yugao Uzuki."

It takes a moment for the name to register but when it does Ino is shocked. "Really, _the_ Yugao Uzuki?" Every girl in the village knew that name, next to Lady Tsunade, Yugao Uzuki was the most famous kunoichi the village had produced. Though Tsunade was the more famous and considered the stronger of the two, Ino actually though Yugao was way cooler, she hadn't abandoned the village. And while there were plenty of strong and competent kunoichi in the village to look up to, none of them had built up the reputation that Yugao had.

Rin sighs, "The very same."

There were about a billion questions that Ino wanted to ask, but she reigned herself in. Getting Rin to open up was more important than any fangirl things she wanted to talk about. "So what happened?"

"She attacked me."

Ino saw red, "I'll kill her." She snarls quietly. Idol or not, nobody messed with her sister.

Rin lets out a tiny chuckle, "No, it's fine, it was a test. She wanted to see how strong I was… I guess I impressed her."

Ino allows herself to calm down a bit. "Of course you impressed her Rin, you're really strong."

Rin shakes her head, "No… I made a complete ass of myself. Why she was impressed I have no idea, I basically did the exact opposite of what a good ninja should do."

"Why would you think that?" Ino asks curiously.

Rin gives her a rueful look, "Promise you won't get mad?"

"What- I… no, I won't promise that, what did you do?" Ino says with a scowl.

Rin sighs, giving her a guilty look that managed to tug at Ino's heart. It was a fine bit of manipulation and Ino would have laughed at how obvious it was if she didn't already know that she really wasn't going to like what she was about to hear. And she was correct in that assessment as Rin relays how she had sensed that she was being followed and instead of doing the sensible thing and going for help, she did the dangerous and reckless thing and engaged the person in an isolated area.

Ino takes a deep breath after Rin finishes her story. "Alright, I'm going to ignore the fact that you did something so stupid, this time. I'm also going to ignore the fact that if I pulled something like that you would kick my ass. What I'm not going to ignore is why you felt you should do it in the first place. So, why did you do it?"

"I was just so… angry. I just had my meeting with the psychologist and he just… it pissed me off and when an opportunity to blow off some steam presented itself… I took it. It was dumb of me, I know… I'm sorry."

It was one thing to engage an unknown enemy when you had no choice, but to seek one out was reckless and Rin knew better. However she did seem genuinely sorry and so Ino places a kiss to her sister's forehead and forgives her. Besides there was something else about this scenario that was really troubling her. "It's okay, just promise you won't do it again."

Rin nods her head.

"Now, tell me about the meeting with the psychologist. What happened, why were you so angry after you left?"

As Rin tells her about the interview Ino pays close attention, asking for specifics whenever Rin would try to just give a generalization of the interview. It really was quite personal for her sister, but if Rin was willing to share then Ino wanted answers. Rin was a skilled shinobi and she was no slouch in the subtle arts, but it was in combat where she shined. Ino was the opposite. She knew she would likely never be as powerful as her sister, but when it came to mind games and intelligence and counter intelligence there was no one better than her.

And as she listened to her sister recall the interview Ino kept coming back to one troubling conclusion, it was a set up.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

The Third sat at his desk and waited patiently for the final person to arrive at the meeting. Yugao was already there, they were just waiting for one more person, a knock on the door signifying their arrival. "Enter." He calls out.

They bow to him as they enter, before shutting the door behind them. The man then says, "Forgive me. I was finishing things up."

"Were there any issues?" The Third asks.

He shakes his head before taking a seat. "No, everything went fine and no one will be any the wiser."

"I don't like this." Yugao speaks up, she hadn't said a word since her arrival nearly thirty minutes ago. "The girl… she's talented, she could be a real asset to this village. We don't need to do this."

"She's right you know. I conducted the interview as you asked and while I agree that she is clear for active duty, and if her records are accurate-"

"They're accurate." Yugao confirms. Their fight earlier confirmed that for her.

"Right, then she definitely has the skill for it, and she's more than mentally prepared to handle shinobi life. But it is my strong recommendation that she not serve in ANBU. She's not a killer. She has the resolve necessary to protect her family and the village, but to actively kill, to assassinate because she's told to and for no other reason… no, she's not capable of it. It will destroy her." The man speaking had given up his name to serve the village, these days he mostly went by his masks title, Snake. But for this last mission he had been allowed to remove his mask.

His mission had been to interview Rin Yamanaka and clear her for active duty as well as do the psyche evaluation for entry into ANBU. If she failed either evaluation he was to falsify the records. She passed for active duty, but if it weren't for the Hokage ordering it he would not currently allow her into ANBU. Though, in this girl's case, ANBU was just a means to an end, and thus her mental state wasn't as important as her physical.

"I have explained to you both why this is so important. I don't like this anymore than you do, but Rin Yamanaka has a destiny she must fulfill. She is the key to our village's future and she must be as strong as possible and it must happen as quickly as possible. This is the only way." The Third says, his voice laced with guilt. "Do not think for a moment that I do not care for the girl, I do, but I also have responsibilities to this village and all of its people, not just one girl."

"I am not questioning your orders sir, but it is my job to vet people for entry into ANBU and I would be remiss if I did not at least give you my honest opinion." Snake says. Actually, the girl was well suited for every aspect of ANBU except one, she didn't have a killer's mindset. Each death that she delivered would weigh heavily on her, too heavily.

The Third then glances over at Yugao. "And you?"

Yugao sighs, "I will train the girl. I have no problem training her. My issue is with what it's all leading to, it feels wrong, but… I accepted this mission and I'll carry it out. But I want it on record that I am doing this under protest. What's being planned, what she's being raised to do… this isn't us, this isn't what our village is about. We're better than this."

"Is it not better that one should perish than countless others?" Snake asks.

"A ninja may be asked at any time to give up their life in service of the village and its people. That is what is being asked of Rin, though she does not know it yet. And no matter how we may feel personally, do not doubt the necessity of what I am asking you to do. How many lives were lost in the last war? Rin's sacrifice will give us an edge that will prevent that from ever happening again." The Third says quietly.

"That's what was thought about the Jinchūriki, we sacrificed people to create these monsters to deter war and then distributed them to maintain a balance of power, it hasn't worked and neither will this." Yugao says with a scowl. "This is wrong. Let's not sugar coat it with some bullshit about necessity, we're serving her up as a lamb to the slaughter."

"Are you up for this?" Snake asks.

Yugao notes with some amusement that his hand had drifted casually, almost accidentally, to his weapon, as if he actually stood a chance against her. Of course this was an S-Ranked mission, if she tried to back out at this point after agreeing to it and learning all of the details that she had, he was absolutely correct to try and take her out then and there… try being the operative word.

"I said I'd do it and I will. She'll be ready in time." Yugao says, glaring at Snake and with her current foul mood enjoying watching him flinch when he senses her killing intent.

Killing Intent wasn't so much a technique, but more like a ninja removing for a brief moment the human mask they wore and letting the world see the monster within. The name was also a bit of a misnomer, because revealed monster wasn't so much a desire to kill as it was the primal, visceral, ability of the shinobi to go through with it. The mask sometimes dropped naturally during tense and violent situations, but could also be dropped on purpose and was a great tool for mind games and putting weaker shinobi in their place.

"And the preparations, how are they coming along?" the Third asks, drawing his two soldiers' attention back to him and off of each other. Yugao and Snake usually worked quite effectively with each other, but this current mission of Yugao's was really throwing her.

"On schedule." Yugao says.

"Good."

"If that's all, then I'd like to go, I have a busy day tomorrow." Yugao says.

The Third nods, "You are dismissed."

After Yugao leaves the Third looks to Snake, "Keep an eye on her, make sure she doesn't waver."

"She won't, but I wouldn't expect her to continue on after this. This may very well be the mission that makes her retire from the shinobi ranks, permanently."

"If all goes according to plan, then it will be an acceptable loss. Please keep an eye on her all the same, on both of them."

"Of course, Lord Hokage. Though the girl was tricky to manipulate, her ability to sense emotions is… difficult to get around."

"Yes, yes it is."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Ino, what are you doing up?" Inoichi asks, as his daughter silently enters his study. He was up late going over some documents, but was having a hell of a time concentrating on them. His mind was focused on Rin.

"I needed to talk to you, but I wanted to wait until Rin and mom were asleep."

Inoichi sets his files down and gives his eldest his full attention. "What's on your mind?"

"Rin, her interview with the psychologist, she told me about it and… something seems off. Rin was too close to it to notice but, the questions she said she was asked seemed really... I don't know, inflammatory, like they were trying to get a reaction out of her."

Inoichi sighs, "They probably were."

"Rin is only giving me pieces to go on but she won't give me the whole picture. You know what's wrong with her, please, tell me what's going on?"

"I'm not completely sure." Inoichi admits after a moment. "All I do know for sure right now is that she's being offered a spot in ANBU."

"What!? Are they crazy, she just freaking graduated!" Ino shrieks quietly.

"I know," Inoichi says, motioning for her to calm down. "But it isn't unheard of. It's called being fast tracked. They'll rush her through the chūnin exams and then once she passes she'll be offered a spot. Though I will admit, I find this all troubling."

"What do you mean?"

Inoichi takes a moment to study his eldest, debating on how much he wanted to share or even should share. Then he realized that if Ino felt something was wrong and it involved her sister, she would dig around anyway. It was better to give her as complete a picture as he had than to let her wander around blind. "There are a couple of things about all of this that don't add up for me. One being why all the secrecy around Rin's apprenticeship. Taking on an apprentice right out of the academy is all but unheard of, I mean, you can, but it just isn't done. Also, why did they go through such lengths to keep me uninformed about it?"

"They kept it from you?" Ino inquires.

"Yes, and quite deliberately."

"Why?"

"Because they don't want me digging in to this, at least not while I could do something about it. Before she graduated Rin was my daughter, if I didn't approve of her training or something felt wrong, as a parent, as a clan head, I could interfere. Now that she's graduated, she is a genin, and a genin, no matter how green, is first and foremost a soldier in this village. Which means I can no longer just say no when it comes to her."

"But why are people so interested in Rin in the first place, I mean, yeah I know she's strong but there are plenty of strong people in the village, and for that matter who's behind all of this. Who is so interested in Rin that they'd do all of this?"

Inoichi gives Ino an appraising look, "Before I continue I need you to be aware that what I am sharing with you is classified. You cannot share this information with anyone, my telling you could even be considered treason. So if you want to back out now, this is the time. You can just rest knowing that I am aware of what's going on and I am looking into it as are others that I trust."

"Rin is my sister, if something is wrong, if someone is after her then I'm going to find out who and stop them."

Inoichi nods his head, "Very well, before all of this, my first guess at any threat towards your sister would be from a man known as Shimura Danzo. Arguably the most dangerous person in this village. He subscribes to a much harsher shinobi philosophy than most other leaders in the village, though he does have his supporters. He believes that a shinobi is a tool to be used and discarded when it no longer serves a purpose. That they are only weapons. He has an interest in gathering unique shinobi to his side and turning them into living, emotionless weapons, and he has shown interest in you and especially your sister in the past."

Ino frowns, "Why, what's so special about us, about Rin? Does it have to do with Rin's abilities as a sensor?"

Inoichi lets out a tired sigh and Ino cannot recall a time she has ever seen her father look so beaten down and defeated. "I don't know if I should tell you this… maybe I shouldn't but… dammit… I just…"

Ino goes over to her father and wraps her arms around him. He was troubled, that much was obvious but something deeper was going on here. He was struggling, her father was her hero, he could do anything in her mind, and sometimes she forgot that he was very much a human too. "Daddy, whatever it is, whatever's wrong, you can trust me and I can handle it." She reassures him.

"What I am about to tell you, you can never tell your sister, ever."

Ino is confused and a little scared now, but she nods her head.

"I am serious Ino, your mother is going to be furious that I've told you, but if you want to understand why powerful people have shown such an interest in your sister, and she is your sister please remember that, then you need to know. Your sister doesn't know and she can't. Rin is so strong in so many ways, but in other ways she is so fragile and learning this could destroy her. Do you understand, you cannot tell her what I am about to tell you, ever."

"I understand." Ino's voice shakes.

"The simplest explanation is we don't know where Rin came from. Your uncles and I, your mother, even the Hokage to a certain degree, none of us have been able to determine where Rin came from."

"What do you mean you don't know where she came from?" Ino asks, stepping back and suddenly feeling angry.

"Rin… she wasn't conceived. You spent most of your time in your mother's womb… alone. Then one day, a powerful surge of chakra coursed through your mother. We rushed her to the hospital, scared that this might have been some kind of assassination attempt, and when we got there… she had another baby inside of her. Rin. The Fourth hypothesized and I myself, as well as Shikaku both agree that whatever that chakra source was, it took a strand of your DNA and made a copy of you."

Ino takes another step back from her father, fear and anger and anxiety storming within her, "She's not a copy, she's my sister!" Ino says, partly defiant, as if daring her father to contradict her, but also partly hysterical as she tries to process what she has just heard.

"I know she is."

"She is my sister! She's not a copy, she's my sister, she's my Rin! You… you… you don't get to just sit there and say she isn't! She's Rin, she's my sister!"

Inoichi gets up and wraps his arms around his eldest daughter who hugs him tightly in return, burying her face in his chest. "She is your sister, and she is my daughter. Full stop, end of story, period. Okay?"

Ino nods her head, her body shaking with emotion.

"However," and Inoichi places a kiss to the top of his daughters head when he feels her stiffen as says that, "however, her origins are a mystery and people have wanted to take her, study her and use her because of it."

"I don't understand, why?"

"When she was first discovered, there were those in the village who wanted to abort both of you and study you. And when that wasn't going to happen they wanted to take Rin, and either study her or turn her into a weapon, or maybe both. And while they did have cause to want to-" Inoichi pauses at the glare that Ino gives him.

"Calm down Ino." Inoichi says gently, "I only meant that I could understand the reasoning, not that I agreed with it or would ever let it happen. But understand, in any other hidden village, Rin would have likely either been taken or killed, whether I approved or not. As much as a shinobi's life deals in secrets, mysteries are abhorred and usually don't mean anything good. Rin is that one in a million exception to that rule. And from birth she has had powerful sensor abilities, she knew the kyuubi attack was going to happen before it did, she could sense the beast's chakra, even as a baby, and she tried to warn us in the only way that a baby could. And more recently, with the Uchiha massacre, do you remember the nightmare that she had a few years ago, the one where she wouldn't wake up?"

Ino nods her head, "I remember… I was so scared for her."

"Me too, well as you are aware, Rin can pick up on people's emotions through their chakra. Emotions affect the spiritual balance of chakra and she can detect that, we believe the nightmare happened because she was picking up the emotions of the scared and dying that night. Your own sensor gifts are developing quite nicely and even my own are nothing to scoff at, but Rin was born with an ability that already surpassed my own and it continues to grow. If you remove the human element from it, Rin could be a powerful weapon."

"But Rin she… she hates fighting, she just wants to protect people…"

"You Ino, she wants to protect you. She loves you, you're her sister and so she wants to do her best to protect you."

"I want to protect her too…" Ino says softly.

Inoichi nods his head, "I know, and so does she. And what better way to gain control of someone than to play on that desire, to offer them the chance to protect those they love, no matter the cost."

"So someone wants to turn Rin into a weapon?"

"Possibly, it is certainly one scenario. I think that now that she has lost some of the protection that being in this clan and being my daughter provides her, they are now making their move, whatever it is."

"Who, you said you originally thought that it was this Danzo person, but now you think it's someone else?"

Inoichi nods his head, "I do, I won't say who, but you can probably guess."

"The Hokage." Ino says, her heart racing as her mind jumps to that conclusion.

"He is certainly one possibility, he has taken an interest in Rin, he started training with her and I allowed it because for the most part I do trust him and the chance for her to learn from a shinobi of his caliber was too great an opportunity for her to pass up. And she did improve, leaps and bounds under his tutelage, but looking back I can see now that it put her in a position where he could keep a better eye on her. I don't know for sure if his motives are sinister or not, I want that to be clear, but his actions towards her of late have garnered my suspicion. Especially with how he kept me in the dark about the apprenticeship. However, he has been a powerful ally against the people in this village who just wanted to take Rin so I don't know anything for sure. And now you know as much as I know."

"So what do we do?" Ino asks, after a moment.

"Keep your eyes and ears open, don't go looking for trouble, but if you discover something I want you to tell me immediately. If you can't find me then tell your Uncle Shikaku or Uncle Chouza. You can trust them. The best thing we can do for Rin right now is get the whole picture."

Ino nods her head, her mind on her sister just upstairs. Her sister who was always so worried about her, who just wanted to protect her, who had hidden enemies that Ino could really do nothing about.

"I'm sorry to have burdened you with all of this."

Ino shakes her head, "No, I wanted to know, I needed to know. Now that I do, I can protect her, I can warn her."

"You can't tell her Ino, you can't."

"She deserves to know." Ino says softly.

"Remember how hard learning her origins was for you? Now, imagine how devastating it would be for her."

"She's strong, she could handle it…" But even as Ino says it she isn't so sure. In some ways Rin was an unbreakable mountain, she could endure anything, but in others… she was so sensitive, so hesitant and unsure. Which was protecting her, telling her everything or keeping it a secret? It was at this moment she got the sense of how much of a struggle all of this probably was for her parents.

"Maybe…" Her father says, "But that is a decision for your mother and I to make, not you, the best thing you can do for Rin right now is just be there for her. Let her know how much you love her and keep your eyes open."

Ino nods her head in agreement, afterwards she bids her father goodnight and she heads back upstairs to her room. As she steps into the room and closes the door behind her she sees Rin stir and sit up and stare at her. "Ino, are you okay?"

"Uh-huh…" Ino says quietly, studying her sister. Memories upon memories flooding her mind as she thinks of all the things they've been through together. Rin wasn't a copy, she was her sister, and she would fight anyone who ever said or even thought otherwise.

"You're really upset right now, what's wrong?" Rin asks.

Ino doesn't say anything, she just goes over to her sister and lays down next to her and curling up against her. Rin had all of these things she was dealing with and she still worried about Ino first. Rin wraps her arms around her. "Ino, whatever it is, it's okay, you can talk to me."

Ino nods, "I know… I know I can…" She croaks out, "I love you, you know that right?"

Rin gives her a gentle smile, "Of course I do."

"I mean it." Ino says, "You're my sister no matter what, and I love you okay. No matter what."

"I love you too."

"And we'll always protect each other and look out for each other, right?"

Rin nods her head, "Of course, I'll always protect you." Rin says softly, and there's a resolution in her voice, as if she's confirming something for herself.

"And I'll always protect you. You're my little sister, no matter what." Ino repeats, her voice is soft and yet strangely forceful as she desperately tries to make Rin understand without being able to tell her.

"Do you want to tell me what's wrong?" Rin asks gently, once more.

Ino shakes her head no, "No… I'll be fine… I just… can I sleep with you tonight?" She needed to be near her sister, to know that right now in this moment, she was here and alive and okay. Safe.

Rin doesn't say anything, instead she pulls back the blankets and Ino crawls under the covers. The two sisters not saying anything, but silently vowing to do whatever it takes to make sure that the other one is safe and protected.


	24. Chapter 23

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Glee.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 23-xXx**

 **s**

Something was bothering Ino and Quinn wasn't quite sure what? But whatever it was it had been enough to wake her up last night. And for the rest of the night Ino had been… clingy wasn't the word that Rin wanted to use, but Ino did not want to be away from her for any reason. People always complained about how she could read emotions, but they never stopped to consider it from her side. She could tell when someone was upset, or angry, she could tell if they were happy or sad. But it wasn't mind reading, she couldn't tell you the cause of it, or what they were thinking. Knowing a person's emotions was all about the broad strokes, never the finer details.

She knew Ino was upset, but unless Ino told her why, that was all she knew. That's it, and she couldn't do anything about it either. It hurt, she wanted to make her sister feel better, and when Ino had left for her training for the day, it was done so reluctantly. It was like she didn't want to let Quinn out of her sight. Her mother was furious as well, at their father, who was feeling tired and guilty. It made Quinn want to scream, she just wanted to stomp her foot and demand that everyone just tell her what was going on.

But then she also recognized how hypocritical of her that was. It wasn't like she was the most forthcoming person either, and in all honesty, she was keeping the biggest secret of them all. That she was some freak who had been reborn into this life with the memories of an entire other life. A life that she had screwed up beyond recognition.

Quinn kisses her mother goodbye for the day and waves to her father as he's leaving as well and begins making her way to her designated meeting spot with her sensei. Hopefully after today everything would calm down and be okay. In the mean time she needed to focus on the things she could affect and change, and so with that thought in mind she reaffirms her resolve from last night.

Ino may have been her older sister physically, but mentally Quinn viewed her as the baby of the family. And while she could be childish at times, Ino for the most part was quite mature, definitely more mature than she had been at that age. And vulnerable was never a word she would have ever applied to Ino, Ino was a fighter. If she didn't like something she changed it, she didn't let it get to her, she didn't let it bring her down. She fought it. Last night had been a little scary for Quinn as she observed her sister. She hadn't broken down and really cried or anything, but she seemed so confused and scared. She was super worried about something, and no matter what Quinn said or did she couldn't comfort her.

She hated that, she hated not being able to make things okay for the person who meant most to her in this world. It really drove home to her that she couldn't protect her sister from everything, but she could protect her from some things. There was no point in beating around the bush, there was no point in over thinking everything. She was going to accept Yugao-sensei's offer anyway. She knew it, Yugao-sensei knew it, her father and mother knew it. So she may as well tackle it the same way she had when she decided to become a ninja in the first place, head on and not holding back. There was nothing she wouldn't do to protect her Ino, or Naruto and Sakura for that matter either, she was going to accept the offer eventually, so she may as well get started. When she first set down on the path to becoming a ninja, didn't she say she would do whatever it takes, not hold back?

She would become the darkness, she would give up her portion of the light so that those she loved could have their time in it. She had said it before right, perfection or death. The choice in whether or not she would do this was made the very moment she entered the academy. Brooding about it and overthinking it was no longer a luxury she had. She had given up the right to hesitate when she swore she would do whatever it took to protect those she loved.

"Good morning sensei." She says with a bow, when she arrives at their designated meeting point. Yugao-sensei was already waiting for her.

"Good morning Rin, are you ready to get started?" Yugao asks.

"Yes, but before we do I have something to tell you."

Yugao gives a nod of her head indicating that Quinn could go ahead.

"Right, I've thought about what you said yesterday, and my answer is yes. I'll take the spot in ANBU when it is offered. I wanted you to know that I've come to that decision. I'll give this training everything that I have, I won't hold back, I won't quit and I swear to you that I'll be the very best. So please, if you had any worries or concerns, forget them, give me everything you've got, and don't hold back."

"You're sure?" Yugao asks, her voice is completely even, almost nonchalant, but Quinn could sense a spike in her concern and a little bit of guilt as well.

"Yes. You said it yourself, I can't protect Ino and the others from everything, but I can do this. I can do this and I can make a difference. The thing about me sensei… when I'm faced with a choice like this it often takes me forever to come to a decision, I'll think and overthink everything, but once I've made a decision, that's it, I stick with it. I've made my decision and I've chosen my path. You have my psyche profile, you knew exactly what to say to me to get me to accept this and I knew it too. It doesn't matter, I would choose the course that would allow me to protect those I love anyway. I just saved myself and you some time by making the decision I was always going to make anyway right now, rather than months from now."

Yugao nods her head. "I want you to know how sorry I am…" Her sensei trails off.

Quinn shakes her head, "Forget it. Your reasons for doing this are your own, they're none of my business. I just need your word that doing this is the best course of action, that I really am doing what's best for Ino, Naruto, and Sakura."

"You have my word, what you're doing may very well save their lives one day. I'm sorry, that's the best guarantee that I can give you."

Quinn nods, "Then that's all I need. However you want to start, I'm ready."

"Alright, well then… forgive me, you are the first student I've ever taken on, so I'm not quite sure how to start." Yugao says, scratching the back of her head.

"Well, seeing as I've never been an apprentice before, I guess you could say we're in the same boat. So don't worry, if you do something wrong, I won't know." Quinn laughs.

Yugao laughs, "Fair enough, I guess I should tell you what to expect with me and what you'll be doing. Because you're in an apprenticeship and not a genin team things are going to be a little different for you. For the most part you and I will be training together, specifically, where your weakness are as well as other skills that you will need to have in order to thrive in ANBU. When we aren't training, you and I will be out on missions putting those skills of yours to use, you are already aware of D-rank missions, however you will not be participating in them. They won't do you any good at your level. We'll start off with a C-Rank and do those until I think you are ready for a B-rank mission. My goal is to have you take one last mission before you participate in the chunin exams nine months from now, hopefully A-rank, but we'll see just how far along you come.

The reason I want to start you off on higher level missions is because they are the best way to learn. Experience can't be taught, only earned. And experience is more valuable in ANBU than anything I could just teach you. Missions will last anywhere between a few days to a few weeks, it just depends. Once a mission is complete and our reports turned in, you will then have at the very least the next 24 hours off. It may be more, but that will depend on how long the mission was and how difficult it proved to be. But after a mission you can at least count on one day of rest.

When we aren't on a mission, we will meet here Monday through Friday at 8 a.m. and we'll train until either 8 p.m. or I release you. Again, that is just going to depend on the day. Saturdays are yours to do with as you please. I suggest you rest and relax but if you feel the need to get some light training in, then be my guest. Just don't exhaust yourself. Sunday's are yours as well, with one exception, I've spoken with the Hokage and he would like to continue to meet with you as he has been and at the same time. You will continue to go but now I'll be there as well. Learning from the Third is just too great an opportunity for you to pass up so I want you to continue to do so. But other than training with him, as I said Sunday's are yours to do as you please."

Quinn nods her head, "Yes sensei."

She kind of wanted to be angry at the Hokage, I mean everything that he had done for her had obviously been done to lead her to this moment, but she found she just couldn't find the anger. He was giving her the best chance she had at protecting her family and friends, and he was the leader of this village, he had hundreds, if not thousands of lives in his hands. In comparison, her one life didn't matter. Really, she was more miffed that he felt he couldn't just talk to her about this, that he had to go around her in way and try to manipulate her into this. And maybe it was necessary, maybe this was the only way she would agree. In the end it didn't matter, what was done was done, and it was best to just move on.

"So… where would you like to begin?" Quinn asks.

"First thing I want to do is get a rundown of your skills as well as go over our fight yesterday. I want to understand why you chose to do what you did, why you engaged me the way you did, and just your thought processes and strategies in general. For example, when you pinned me the other day, I noticed that you went for a kunai rather than the kaiken at your hip, why? The kaiken is a sharper blade, and would have had much better leverage in that situation than the kunai?"

Quinn thinks about it for a moment, "Well the short answer is I'm more experienced with a kunai than I am with a kaiken. I mean I have had some blade training and I know how to wield both, but I know how to use a kunai much more effectively and comfortably than I do a kaiken. My friend Sakura gave me this blade and it really is a high quality piece of equipment, but until I can really train with it I don't want to use it unless I have to. I'm like that with anything, I don't use it unless I have either reached a proficiency with it that I find acceptable or I don't have any other choice. The **Fiend Fyre Jutsu** I used against you yesterday, for example, I would never have used that normally, I haven't mastered it yet. But I felt I had no choice. I mean, I guess I could have tried the dragon flame bomb or another phoenix flower, or any of the other fire jutsu's I know, but you had already shown that you could avoid them. Fiend Fyre jutsu was just the best option under the circumstances."

"Fair enough, though I don't mind telling you it had me completely on the defensive. I felt you used it quite proficiently."

Quinn shakes her head, "No… I can control it to a certain degree, but I haven't reached anywhere near an acceptable proficiency with it. Every technique I know, and I do mean every technique, I master it. I get it to the point where I either only need one hand seal to activate it or even none at all."

"I noticed that, it was quite impressive, I saw you activating your fire jutsu with only a single hand seal. Are you saying you can do that with all of your jutsu?" Yugao was surprised once again, most shinobi figured that once you could perform a technique consistently, that was all that was needed and you could move on. That this girl wasn't satisfied with just learning a technique was rare.

"Most of them, it's what I consider the level I need the jutsu to be at before I can actively rely on it in battle. Once I have reached that level of proficiency with a technique then I work it into my battle strategies. Like with my fire jutsu, pretty much all of them I have down to just a single hand sign, and when I'm at my threshold point I don't even need hand seals to create them, I can just will them into being. But the Fiend Fyre Jutsu is different, I can't even perform the technique unless I've reached my threshold point, and even then I have to use all the hand seals required and call out the name of the jutsu. And it is an extremely chakra intensive technique, even with my larger reserves and level of control, I can't realistically maintain it much longer than I did against you."

"You've mentioned this threshold point, what is it exactly? I noticed that your abilities seem to have increased exponentially once you did it, it was similar to opening the gates but that isn't what you did?"

Quinn gives a quiet hum before answering, "The concept itself is pretty simple, but difficult to execute. Basically, I convert all of my chakra from yin and yang chakra into fire chakra. The increase in energy if I were to pull it off would be extraordinary, it would do on its own what would take multiple enhancement jutsu to do. It would super heat my body to the point that fighting me in hand to hand would be near impossible and I would be able to perform all of my fire jutsu without the use of hand seals and almost no chakra."

"Cool, what are the downsides?" Yugao asks, intrigued by the concept.

"In that form I could only perform fire jutsu or non-elemental jutsu, not that it would really affect me now, but later on I hope to incorporate more elements into my style. At the threshold point and beyond I would be restricted almost completely to fire jutsu. Also you can't just fall into it. It takes time and preparation, so I can't just… you know snap my fingers and do it, I have to give myself time, which is not always possible in battle. And if I don't maintain perfect control over the fire chakra within me, I'm essentially a giant bomb. The control is the hardest part, I haven't been able to reach a full conversion yet, and that is what the Hokage and I have been working on for the past few months. The threshold point is that point where half my chakra is normal and half is fire chakra. It's the best I've been able to pull off and still be able to fight."

As Quinn continued to list off her abilities and what she was working on and what she would like to work on, Yugao listened attentively, asking a question here or a bit of clarification there, but for the most part allowing Quinn to just speak. Once Quinn had finished listing off her techniques Yugao nods her head.

"You've impressed me once again, people will start to think that happens easily." Yugao teases.

Quinn ducks her head in embarrassment, but is actually quite pleased. Yugao Uzuki was a powerful kunoichi, and the fact that she did seem pleased with her was in all honesty a bit of an ego boost.

"You've got the right attitude about your training. You'd be amazed at how long it takes people to get into that mindset of perfecting and honing what you already know. All too often, genin through chūnin, it's like a mad rush to learn as much as you can as quickly as you can. But, what good is knowing a thousand jutsu if you can't use them properly."

Quinn shrugs, "That's kind of how I always looked at it. Besides, I've always been a bit of a perfectionist." She finishes with a small laugh.

"Me too. Well, I think that's enough talk, shall we get to work." Yugao says with a kind smile.

"Yes sensei."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn lets out a pitiful whimper with each step up the stairs to her room. Yugao-sensei was a sadist of the worst kind. She made coach Sylvester seem like a kind and benign athletics guide in comparison to how hard Yugao-sensei worked her, and yet Quinn really couldn't complain too much. Yugao-sensei didn't ask her to do anything that she wasn't willing to do as well, which actually put her lightyears ahead of her old coach… still didn't change the fact that she was a sadist.

By the time it was lunch Quinn was soaked through her clothes with sweat, having been pushed harder and further in that morning than she ever had before. Yugao gave her an hour and half long lunch which was nice and they spent the time resting and getting to know each other a little better, mostly through small talk. Once lunch was over however the real training began. They went through another series of exercises until Quinn could barely stand and then they sparred.

 _"Very rarely will you ever battle at one hundred percent, so I'm going to get you used to fighting when you're at less than perfect."_

Quinn couldn't argue with the reasoning, in fact it made perfect sense to her. But it sucked, it really did. By the time Yugao-sensei had called it quits for the day Quinn was ready to just fall over and die. Yugao-sensei said she did great for her first day and to be ready to do it all over again tomorrow. The look on her face when Yugao-sensei had said that must have been something because the older woman had laughed.

She was so tired and sore after her dismissal that it had taken her 45 minutes to walk home, wincing with each step. When she had finally gotten home her mother had taken one look at her, gave her a sympathetic smile and sent her upstairs, saying that she would bring her up some dinner.

Once she finally reached the top of the stairs Quinn decided that whoever decided that buildings should be more than one story was an evil sociopath and she cursed them to the deepest pits of hell. She opens the door to her room where Ino is already inside, flipping through a magazine.

"Geeze, you look terrible." Ino says.

Quinn collapses face down onto her bed and groans. "Gee, thanks, just what every girl wants to hear."

"You're pretty snarky for someone who looks like they spent the day being dragged behind a horse." Ino teases, as she gets up from her bed and goes and sits down beside her. When she speaks again however, her voice is much more sympathetic. "You okay?"

"Uh-huh…"

"Pretty rough day, huh?"

"Oh gods… yes, Yugao-sensei is a sadist… I ache in places that I didn't even know you could ache..." Quinn then uses the last bit of her energy to roll over so that she can look at Ino. "So my day was rough, what about you?"

Ino rolls her eyes, "I painted a fence. Boy let me tell you, it used up every bit of my training and knowledge to complete. I don't know how I ever would have survived it if not for the academy and all those years preparing for this moment." Ino's voice is dripping with sarcasm.

Quinn giggles weakly, "Well, that's good to know, at least your talents aren't being wasted."

"Shut up." But there's no real bite to Ino's voice. "Hey, can I talk to you about something?"

Quinn yawns before answering, "Sure, you can talk to me about anything, you know that."

"It's about you joining ANBU, daddy told me about the offer."

"Oh… is that why you were so upset last night?"

"Partly, I just…" Ino trails off for a moment like she's considering what exactly she wants to say, "I think it's a bad idea. I… I think, no, I know you'd do really well there. I know you're strong enough, but, I just have a really bad feeling about it. So I'm asking you, please don't do it. Don't join." Ino finishes softly. She couldn't just come out and say what she suspected, and the danger Rin may because that would lead to questions of why, and she couldn't let Rin know that she was different. But maybe if she could warn her sister against this, get her to maybe pull back and separate herself from where she was being led then maybe everything would be okay.

"I'll be okay. Really, you don't have to worry about me."

Ino shakes her head, "No it's not just that, it's…" Ino stops and takes a breath, "I want you to be more than just 'okay.' I want you to be happy, and I want you to be safe. You can't do that in ANBU."

"Ino…"

"Look, I can't stop you, and if this is really what you want to do then you know I'll support you one hundred and ten percent, but… I just have a really bad feeling about it. And if you're joining up for me, if I'm the reason you feel you have to do this, then I'm telling you, don't. Okay, just don't."

Quinn sits up, wincing slightly as she does so. She then takes Ino's hand in her own. "I won't lie and say that you aren't a motivating factor… because you are, but… I don't know what else to do. I don't know what I want to do in this life. I don't want to be Hokage like Naruto, I don't want to become some kind of Taijutsu master like Sakura, I don't want to be the head of Intelligence like you do someday, I don't have any ambition as a shinobi… I just don't. The only thing I care about is being strong enough to protect you and everyone else… and I think that doing this will allow me to do that. I think that this is the right path for me. Or maybe not, but… I don't know, I just… I feel like I have to do this. It's the same way I felt when I first decided to go to the academy, I don't want to, but I know that I have to. I can feel it."

"Okay." Ino says with a sad smile. "Just, promise me that you'll be careful, that you'll… that you'll keep your eyes open. That you'll trust your instincts, that if something doesn't feel right that you'll listen to that feeling." Ino is staring at her so intently, as if she's trying to convey something else to her, some kind of hidden message, but Quinn is so exhausted, physically and mentally, that she just can't pick it up.

"I promise I'll be as safe as I can as long as you promise the same." Quinn says with a reassuring smile.

"Rin…" Ino sighs, as if her sister had missed the point entirely. It's at that moment that Ino comes to a decision and it's on the tip of Ino's tongue to tell her sister everything. To warn her about the Hokage and this Danzo person. To tell her why she needed to be careful and why they were after her in the first place. Rin could handle it, she was strong enough. And if she wasn't, then Ino would be strong enough for her, she wouldn't let Rin believe she wasn't real or that they weren't sisters. She knew she had promised their father she wouldn't say anything, but Rin didn't get it. She didn't understand just how much danger she was in. Being a ninja, joining ANBU, was dangerous in and of itself, but Rin was going in blind with an unknown enemy pulling the strings and they just didn't have enough information to know who was really on Rin's side. She had to protect her sister.

However, before she can say anything there is a soft tapping on the door and their mother steps in carrying a light dinner for Rin and Ino's resolve wavers. As Rin thanks their mother and starts to eat Ino decides that for now she'll just do as her father asked and just watch and listen. Help gather more pieces to the puzzle that was Rin and find out what it was exactly they wanted from her, whoever they ended up being. And Ino would train hard, harder than she ever had before, that way if it came down to it, she would just kill whoever was after her sister and remove the threat permanently.


	25. Chapter 24

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Glee or any of their characters. Please forgive any spelling or grammar errors. I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 24-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn brought her blade forward, focusing the strength in her arms as the other blade strikes hers, blocking it. She then in one fluid motion brings her blade behind her to block yet another strike. She then proceeds with her counter attack, using a combination of her own intuition and now familiar katas to reign down a series of blows on her opponent, finishing her assault by ducking under a counter swipe to her head, spinning around and jabbing her sword into their stomach. Quinn tries to take a steady breath but quivers as she does so. The sweat is dripping down her body while her lungs are on fire.

"Great job Rin, you're getting the hang of it." Yugao-sensei says, as the person she had just stabbed explodes in a cloud of smoke, a shadow clone of her sensei. Yugao-sensei then brings her hands up into the now familiar cross shape and another shadow clone appears. "Again."

Quinn doesn't say anything she just pushes herself to her feet and gets ready for the attack. Her days were generally split into four parts. The first quarter of her day was dedicated to physical conditioning. Flexibility, endurance, agility, precision, etc. After that they spent the rest of the morning, until lunch, working on whatever it was that she wanted to. So Quinn found herself asking to be taught different utility jutsu, she was currently working on the **Hidden Mole Jutsu** her first non-fire element jutsu. It was an earth release technique that basically allowed her to swim through earth. It was pretty fun too, but Quinn found that she was actually having a hard time mastering it. She was so used to the wild fire chakra that the rigidness of earth chakra was incredibly foreign to her.

Once they had lunch, Yugao-sensei would go into ANBU-prep. Teach her various things she would need to know once she was offered her spot. Quite a bit of it was protocol and things like that, as well as more intricate shinobi sign language, which she was picking up fairly quickly. But her main focus was currently anatomy, an intimate knowledge of the human body was required of all ANBU, and finally they worked a little bit on her tracking skills, specifically without the use of her gift.

Yugao-sensei told her that she was likely going to be utilized as a hunter-nin specialist, tracking down and either capturing or eliminating enemy and rogue ninja, and that if she could prove herself a superior tracker without her sensor abilities then once in the field and actively using them, there would be, theoretically, no one who could hide from her.

And Quinn had to admit that learning the intricacies of tracking down someone without the use of her abilities was pretty satisfying. They covered a few other things but for now that was what Yugao-sensei liked her to focus on. The last few hours of training were dedicated to sparring. Quinn would already be physically tired by this point and so they would get straight into it. Yugao had them go nonstop right up to the last fifteen minutes of training time where they would spend that time doing cool down stretches and Yugao would tell her what the schedule for tomorrow would likely be. One really nice thing about Yugao-sensei was that once eight o'clock hit, they were done.

 _"I'm working you harder than any other genin in this village is being asked to, and not only have you not complained once, but you continue to give it your all. Eight is when I said we'd be done and that's when I'll end it."_

Quinn is brought out of her musings by the hilt of a blade smacking her in the face, knocking her back and to the ground, before she can think to counter however there is a blade poking into her neck but not actually piercing it.

The clone disperses.

"Ouch, that had to hurt. Come here kid." Yugao says and Quinn obediently does so. Yugao's hands glow green with medical chakra and she gently runs it overs Quinn's cheek and the throbbing in her face starts to dissipate. "There, it'll be sore for a day, but that should take care of the worst of it."

Yugao then gives her a disapproving look, "If that had been a real battle you'd be dead, what happened?"

"Sorry sensei, no excuses, I just lost focus." Quinn replies.

"Well… I guess it is getting late, why don't we call it early tonight?" Yugao offers with a smile.

"I can keep going, we still have another thirty-five minutes left." Quinn says.

"Nah, it's good to take a break now and then. Let's do some stretching and then you can get home."

"Yes sensei." Quinn answers. The two of them going into the now familiar stretches that helped to loosen all of the tightly wound up muscles of the day.

"So how are you liking the Katana? I know you thought it was a little clunky when you first started using it?"

"It's much better now, I see what you meant about the blade becoming an extension of your arm too. It feels really natural while I hold it." Yugao-sensei was currently letting her borrow one of her old blades until she could afford to go to the smith and have him forge one for her.

Yugao smiles, "I'm glad, you've picked it up much quicker than I anticipated. I'm really proud of you."

"Thank you sensei." And Quinn did feel a rush of pride, Yugao had spent three weeks working with her and Quinn had been giving it everything she had, it was nice to know that she was meeting the other woman's expectations.

"You're working hard and you've advanced quite nicely… How about we take a mission tomorrow?"

"Really, you think I'm up for it?" Quinn asks. Yugao-sensei had said she wouldn't be doing any D-rank missions so that meant when she finally did go on one it would actually be a real mission. So far Ino as well as Naruto and Sakura, the two of them she had only seen once in the past three weeks and only for a few minutes, had been relegated to team training exercises and D-rank missions.

"I think I want to see just how far you've come. Instead of meeting here, meet me on the roof in front of headquarters. We'll go get our mission then."

"Yes sensei."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

It's as Quinn is walking home for the night when she hears a pleasant and familiar voice calling out to her.

"Rin! Rin! Hey Rin! Guess what, guess what!?" Quinn stops when she both hears and senses Naruto running to catch up to her, with Sakura following behind. Both of them are super excited.

Quinn has to brace herself as Naruto flings himself into her arms for a big hug. "Rin guess what!?"

Quinn laughs before putting a thoughtful look on her face, "Hmm… let think…"

"We're-"

"Up-bup-bup-bup," Quinn interrupts him, "You have to let me guess first. That's how this works." She tells him, sending a wink to a giggling Sakura who has joined them, the look of frustration on Naruto's face was priceless.

"Awe, come on Rin, it's just an expression…" He pouts.

"Hey, you're the one who wanted to play, I'm just following the rules. Now let me think… you're getting a dog right?" Quinn says with a huge grin. She had laughed herself silly when she had heard about the dog walking incident.

"No! It's-"

"Wait, a cat, you're getting a cat! That has to be it!"

Both Naruto and Sakura shudder at that, neither of them were all that fond of cats right now after a run in with the infamous Tora.

"No, no, it's-"

"You're opening your own ramen shop!" Quinn says excitedly, interrupting him once more.

"Rin!" Naruto whines.

"Alright, alright, what is it?"

"We're going on our first C-rank mission tomorrow." Naruto beams excitedly.

"You… you are, that's… it's a little early, isn't it?" Quinn asks, turning to Sakura for clarification.

Sakura shrugs but smiles, "Maybe, but Kakashi-sensei said that we're skilled enough to handle a little more responsibility early."

"I guess you are, congratulations." Quinn says softly, she was scared spit less for them, but they were both so excited that she didn't have it in her to rain on their parade, so to speak. But three weeks, was really early, Yugao-sensei said most genin spend their first few months doing team building exercises and D-rank missions.

"Thanks Rin! Kakashi-sensei already surprised us with it too, we leave first thing in the morning!"

"Oh, and where are you off to?"

"We're delivering some documents to the fire capital. Pretty simple stuff, but because we're leaving the village they have to label it a C-rank mission instead of D-rank." Sakura reassures her. Naruto was super excited and probably hadn't noticed, but Sakura had. Rin was worried about them.

"Yeah, yeah, they're secret vital documents that discuss super secrets and stuff!" Naruto says.

"Financial stubs." Sakura amends with a laugh.

"Oh come on Sakura, can't you let me have any fun, besides, what if they only look like financial stubs, the real documents could be sealed away on them or- or you know written in invisible ink."

Quinn and Sakura both giggle at that, "You are absolutely correct Naruto. It would be the perfect cover, however, depending on the documents being hidden, your mission may be B or even A ranked, you might want to take it up with the Hokage for stiffing you on the pay." Quinn teases.

Naruto laughs, and then scratches the back of his head, "Yeah, yeah, I guess it probably isn't super-secret documents, is it?"

"No, probably not, still they are official documents and… and if your sensei feels you are ready for a higher rank mission then I'm sure you are." Quinn says with a smile. Deciding to try and be happy for her friends.

"It's a good first step anyway." Sakura says, "I'll just be glad to get out of the village, and hopefully Sasuke will… calm down." Sakura finishes with a sigh.

"You mean hopefully he'll stop being an incredible ass. Not likely." Naruto scoffs.

"You guys still having problems with him?" Quinn asks.

"I think he's just restless, he's not taking to the teamwork exercises like Naruto and I and he's really having a hard time with the D-rank missions. He's frustrated."

"He's a dick."

"Naruto…" Sakura scolds, although there's no real force behind it, Quinn could tell that despite her diplomacy, Sakura agreed.

"What, he is. You and I aren't any happier about those stupid things either, but at least we're getting paid and we are learning a lot from Kakashi-sensei too. I mean sure he's a pervert but-"

"Wait, what, what do you mean pervert?" Quinn asks, genuinely confused.

Naruto rolls his eyes, but it's Sakura who answers, her cheeks flushed, "He reads porn out in public. You know that Icha Icha series? He's always reading them and giggling to himself, he doesn't even try to hide it or show any shame."

"Sakura keeps trying to sneak a peek." Naruto teases with a foxy grin.

"I do not!" Sakura shouts, looking horrified back and forth between Naruto and Rin, "Sensei asked me to grab something from his pack once… and I… I may have accidentally looked at one…" Sakura's face is a bright red. And Quinn can't help but take note of how cute Sakura looks right then before viciously and ruthlessly squashing that thought.

"Right, anyway," Naruto says, "Kakashi-sensei is a perv and everything, but he's super strong and we're learning a lot. Did you know that Kakashi-sensei trained under the Fourth Hokage!? He was like the coolest Hokage ever, and Kakashi-sensei says he still has some of the Fourth's Fuinjutsu notes and that once I'm advanced enough he'll let me look at them! How awesome is that!?"

"That's really cool Naruto, so your seals are coming along nicely then?"

"He's doing great," Sakura answers, "You should see him when we aren't training or doing a mission, he's bent over these scrolls and note pads of his coming up with all these designs. You wouldn't even recognize him, he's so focused."

"Well… most of them won't work… not yet anyway…" Naruto blushes.

"Yet, being the keyword right?" Quinn asks.

"Right." Sakura agrees, while Naruto laughs, basking in the praise of two of his friends.

"Well, what about you Sakura? How's your training going?"

"I'm pretty happy with how it's going. Kakashi-sensei has copied a ton of different fighting styles from all over the world so he and I are working together and going over my strengths and weaknesses to develop my own original fighting style."

"Wow, that's awesome Sakura, you really are on your way to becoming a Taijutsu master." Quinn praises.

Sakura blushes and smiles, "Thanks, plus he's teaching me a few genjutsu as well. It's not my focus or anything but he's showing me how to implement them into my fighting strategies."

"And what about Sasuke?" Quinn asks, more out of a sense of politeness than any real interest.

Naruto rolls his eyes. "He's trying to activate his stupid bloodline, the shenanigan or something like that. He's not having much luck." Naruto snickers.

"Well, what about you Rin, what's it like being trained by Yugao Uzuki?" Sakura asks.

"Hard." Quinn laughs, "But good, we've mostly just been training, I'm actually going to be going on my first mission tomorrow as well."

"That's great Rin, do you know what it is?" Sakura asks.

"Knowing Rin, it'll probably be something awesome like protecting a princess or something like that!" Naruto laughs.

"It could be, I don't know, I won't find out till tomorrow. So I meant to ask, what are you guys doing out so late?" Quinn asks.

"This guy with humongous eyebrows asked Sakura out today. So we're meeting up with him." Naruto answers.

"Humongous eyebrows?"

"Rin, they're alive." Naruto says, "Anyway, Sakura didn't want it to be a date so she turned it into a group thing."

"It's Lee, I've told you about him. I really like him as a friend, but just as a friend, and I do enjoy spending time with him, but I don't want to give him the wrong idea, so I asked Naruto if he'd like to join us." Sakura explains.

"Have you told him how you feel?" Quinn asks.

Sakura sighs, "Yes, however… you'd have to experience Lee to really understand him. Like I said, I like him as a friend but he wants more and he's not giving up so easily."

"Do you want me to talk to him?" Quinn asks, her anger spiking along with her concern for Sakura. There was no way in hell she was going to let someone continue to harass her friend, especially Sakura. If this little punk wasn't going to take no for an answer on his own she would make him.

"It's fine Rin, really." Sakura says gently. She had picked up on her friends shift in mood instantly. "Honestly, I think he asks out of habit more than any real interest these days. If you want, you could come join us though," There's a slightly hopeful tone to Sakura's voice as she offers, "Once I invited Naruto, Lee said he would invite his team as well, so I think Lee's teammate Tenten will be there at the very least, maybe even Neji."

Quinn shakes her head, feeling guilty, "No, I can't, I'm really sorry. I've got an early day tomorrow so I need to get home, but… it's really good to see you two, I've missed you both." Quinn says softly.

Naruto nods his head, "Yeah, we really miss you too, I wish we could hang out more, but we're always so busy and you're always training."

"We still get to see Ino quite a bit and she keeps us updated on you but… we miss having you there in person, when it's only the three of us it's just not the same." Sakura adds. Rin was working much different hours than they were so they never got to see her. They could usually hook up with Ino, she had a similar duty schedule to them, so they got to hang out with her throughout the week, which was nice, but Rin's schedule was so different from theirs that meeting up with her was nearly impossible. The only day she didn't have some kind of training was Saturday and even then she was usually either sleeping or too tired to go out and do anything.

"Hey, I know, let's all meet up next Saturday, we'll spend the whole day together, right. We should all be back from our missions by then, you can talk to Ino and let her know and it'll be just like old times!" Naruto suggests excitedly.

"I think I could make that work. I'll talk to Ino and let her know."

"Great, lets plan on that then. Naruto and I will take care of everything, right?" Sakura says, turning to Naruto for confirmation.

"Right, you can count on us, believe it!"

"Sounds like a plan."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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"Hey Ino, what's up?" Quinn asks as she steps into their room. Ino's ninja equipment was currently strung about the entire room in an organized mess.

"Rin, hey, sorry about the mess. Asuma-sensei is taking us on our first C-Rank mission tomorrow so I'm getting ready. Naruto showed me these really cool storage seals so I'm just organizing everything and getting them ready."

"You too, huh…" First Naruto and Sakura, and now Ino. They were supposed to be months out from leaving the village for missions but it was barely into their third week as shinobi and already they were onto C-rank missions.

"What's wrong?" Ino asks, picking up on her sister's discomfort instantly.

"Naruto and Sakura are going on a C-Rank mission tomorrow as well."

"Really, fantastic, good for them. I know that they've really been chafing under those D-Rank missions."

"Yeah…"

"You need to learn to trust us Rin." Ino says standing up and facing her sister. "We've all trained really hard to get where we're at and we can handle this, you need to learn to trust us."

"I do trust you, but I still worry, I mean you can't tell me that this isn't all really soon."

"Sakura is really strong, and every time I see Naruto he's gotten stronger, and Sasuke may be an ass but he's pretty tough as well. It's not surprising that their sensei thinks they're ready for more." Ino says.

"And what about you, I know you can handle yourself but things can still go wrong, and what about Chouji and Shikamaru, I know you're ready but can you say the same about them?" Quinn asks, she knew this was going to happen eventually, but now that it was actually here, she was having a harder time with it than she originally thought she would.

"I've been ready for more than D-Rank missions since day one. And Chouji has worked really hard to get stronger and improve. It might be a little early, but I truly believe he can handle it if given the chance. We'll be fine if we look out for each other."

"And Shikamaru?"

"He's gotten better too… if only just a little bit." Ino says with a scowl, which considering it was Ino, was actually high praise from her as far as the topic of Shikamaru was concerned.

"I'm sorry… I just… I really wish we were together."

"I do too, but that's not possible right now and what I really need from you, more than anything, is for you to have faith in me. I need to know my sister believes in me."

"You know I do Ino."

"Do I? I know you worry about me, but sometimes it feels like you think I'm incompetent. I know you have reservations about being a ninja, but the first C-rank mission is a big deal and I'd like to think that in addition to concern you'd at least be a little proud of me."

"I am, and you're right it's just… Ino, you're my sister, my twin… it's life and death out there and if anything were to ever happen to you…"

Ino's features soften a bit, and she goes over to her sister and wraps an arm around her, the two of them taking a seat on Rin's bed. "I know. But I'll be okay and so will the others, you trained with us, you should know better than anyone else just how tough we are."

Quinn nods her head, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. But just remember, the way you feel right now, that's how I feel about you all the time, and so do Sakura and Naruto. They have each other, and I have back up, but you're on your own and not only that, but I know you've decided to go through with the ANBU offer so you're running headlong into the most dangerous job a ninja can have. And you're doing it alone. Out of all of us, you, more than anyone need to be careful." Rin wasn't even aware of how true this was. It was why Ino was so eager to start taking harder missions, she had to be stronger, strong enough to protect her sister.

"I'll be okay, really, you don't need to worry about me." Quinn tries to reassure her, before ducking her head and blushing. Pretty much proving Ino's point.

Ino smiles at her sister, seeing that she was finally starting to get it. "You say that, but I can remember quite clearly how you looked in that hospital bed after your fight with Mizuki. We may not be able to be there for one another physically, but we can still believe in and support one another, okay?"

Quinn gives a little laugh and nods her head, "Okay, you're right. And Ino, I really am proud of you, I know I may worry too much but please don't ever doubt how much I believe in you."

"Thanks."

"So, do you know what your mission is?" Quinn asks, trying to be more supportive in spite of her worries.

"We're escorting a merchant to the Land of Tea in the south. Nothing major."

"I don't know about that, you're protecting a merchant, that's like the classic ninja mission."

Ino laughs, "Yeah, but it's hardly going behind enemy lines. We'll be on the Imperial Highway for most of it. Pretty safe and pretty clear for most part."

"Still, pretty cool."

"Thanks Rin." Ino says, resting her head on her Rin's shoulder, appreciating her sister's effort.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn was restless as she dreamt about her sister and her friends. A shinobi's life was in the shadows, Yugao-sensei had been right, when they decided to become ninjas they chose a life that walked the shadows. However, most genin teams spent months in team training and D-Rank missions, but only three weeks in and the people who matter most to her were already taking another step into an increasingly dangerous world.

She needed to hurry, she needed to accelerate her own training and her own progress. She couldn't save them from the shadows, but she could save them from darkness. She needed to place herself between them and the worst of what this world had to offer. They were already proving their worth to the village, and that meant they were in more danger than ever. The Third had told her that war was coming, she needed to be ready to shield them from it.

 _"Please, come in Rin." The Third says as she stands in the doorway to his office. Today would be the first day that Quinn would train with the Third since she had become a genin._

 _"Sir." Quinn says hesitantly as she enters, "Where's Yugao-sensei? I thought she was going to be joining us?"_

 _"I asked her to meet us at the field. I wished to speak with you, and explain to you why I've done what I have. Why I approved an apprenticeship, why I want to fast track you into ANBU. I feel like I owe it to you."_

 _"You don't owe me anything sir, you have a responsibility to this village, in comparison to that, I don't matter. I get that."_

 _"But that is where you are wrong, because you do matter, very much so. Please, don't think for a moment that after these past few years of training with you that I haven't grown to care for you. I need to explain to you my decision for my own peace of mind, if nothing else. And in spite of what you have said, I do owe you an explanation. Will you please take a seat and hear me out?"_

 _Quinn nods her head, and takes the seat across from him._

" _For nine years now we have been at relative peace. The last war with Kumo ended in a decisive and in some ways overwhelming victory for Konoha. And since then we have essentially been the most powerful and influential of the five great villages. But times are changing, the peace is getting harder and harder to maintain. I have done my best to maintain the balance between the villages and foster peace, but jealousy, old anger, and resentment has festered against us. It is my belief that war is almost imminent, that the balance of peace is tipping and that your generation will be forced to fight in a war, not of your making but of ours, the older generation."_

" _Is it really that bad?" Quinn asks._

" _I'm afraid it is. Encounters and skirmishes between our forces and Kumo have been steadily on the rise in the past few years, and Iwa has refused every diplomatic overture we've made since the last war and unfortunately skirmishes between our two forces are on the rise as well. And as little as we know about the situations in Kumo and Iwa, we know even less about Kiri. Our village's enemies surround us and grow more and more bold every day._

 _Even our relationship with Suna has begun to grow strained. Unfortunately for them, the economic growth of Konoha and the land of Fire in general after our victory over Kumo has led to an economic depression for them. Relations with Suna are still friendly, but are growing more strained as they lose customers to us. I have done my best to help and even mitigate that, but Suna is weaker now than it has ever been. There is growing resentment, and when war breaks out, I don't know that we'll be able to count on them."_

" _Forgive me sir, but… I don't understand what that has to do with me?"_

 _"While our economy and influence has grown our forces are weaker than ever. We have more shinobi in our ranks than ever but most of them are content to make chunin and leave it at that. There's no urgency, no need to progress and push themselves. Our forces are stagnating. The Sannin; Minato Namikaze,The Yellow Flash; Sakumo Hatake, the White Fang; every generation produces legends in their own right. Ninja who act as stalwarts in the face of overwhelming odds, who the village turns to in times of trouble and doubt. I believe you to be one of these legends in the making."_

 _"Sir… I… uh… that's not me, I'm not-"_

 _"Oh but you are. You inspire those around you, you stand firm in the face of danger, you care not for yourself or your own fate, but those dear to you. You already walk this path, like those before you, you have set yourself as a shield to those in this village, to bear the burdens of shinobi life so that others don't have to."_

 _Quinn is silent for a moment, her face pale and her heart racing. "I don't know what it is you want from me? I'm not… I'm no legend and I'm certainly not a hero."_

 _"I tell you this, not to scare you Rin, I tell you this because whether you knew it or not, when you decided that your sister and your friends meant more to you than anything else in this world, even your own happiness, you already took the first steps down this path. I decided to push you along because with the way the world is setting itself up, we need you sooner rather than later. You underestimate the difference that a single person can make. The Fourth Hokage for example, never thought himself a legend, but I'll tell you now, when he entered the battlefield the spirits of those who served with him soared, even in the face of overwhelming odds, his presence and the hope he gave others won us battles that shouldn't have been won. The Sannin while in their prime, even the mere mention of them was enough to give our enemies pause, and inspired hope in those around them. Before he betrayed the village, Itachi Uchiha walked the path you are now. He was just setting out on it, but even now, despite what he did, his name is spoken with reverence and regret by those he served with. I'm asking of you what no one has the right to ask, I'm asking you to fill these shoes, I am asking you to give yourself up in service to this village and its people. And I ask it not because I want to, but because no one else can do what you can. I'm asking you to take the love you have for your sister, for your friends, and extend it to all the people of this village. To act as a shield. That is why I started training you, that is why I authorized your apprenticeship, because the storm that is on the horizon is going to be worse than anything before and the people of this village are going to need people like you to look to as a source of hope, as a light in the darkness, even as that very darkness consumes you."_

 _"Lord Hokage… I…"_

 _This was too much. She couldn't do what he was asking, there was no way she could be what he and this village needed. She was worthless, she was barely scraping by with her sanity intact. She wasn't the hero in making, Rin Yamanaka, she was Quinn Fabray, colossal screw up. She wasn't Rin, she wasn't what this world needed, she was Quinn, she was… she was a Fabray. You're a Fabray, perfection or death, "Lord Hokage… I… I'll try not to let you down…"_

 _The air around her shimmers as an intense heat begins to fill the room. Soon smoke and black fire begins to creep its way into her memory, consuming the dream world around her. The Hokage, his office, everything around her is consumed by the black flame and turned to ash._

 _Amaterasu._

Quinn awakens with a gasp, ripping her covers off of her. She was covered in sweat and her temperature was up and she felt like it was a million degrees in here. The flames of the Amaterasu barely kept at bay. She would need to meditate and center herself again soon. The black fire had never truly disappeared, but for the most part she was able to keep it suppressed. She looks over at the clock and sees that it was a quarter past one. Quinn lies back down and takes a calming breath before looking over at the sleeping form of Ino.

Her sister, her twin. Ino was taking her first steps into this dangerous world. Quinn couldn't protect her from everything but she could stand as a shield to worst of it. She could let the darkness feast on her and spare her sister the worst of it. Ino would be okay, she had to trust that, she just did, Quinn couldn't live with the alternative, "I'll try not to let you down." She whispers quietly into the night, before closing her eyes in the hopes of getting a few more hours of sleep.

 **s**

 **xXx—xXx**

 **s**

 **Author's Note: You have no idea how hard this chapter was to write, seriously, I have four, count them, four different versions of this chapter, before I finally changed around two of them and combined them into this. There are so many things I wanted to do and set up for the future that it was incredibly hard to decide on which way to take this chapter. I actually do like how it turned out and I hope you all did too. Hopefully, now that this chapter is done writing will become easy again lol.**


	26. Chapter 25

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 25-xXx**

 **s**

"Rin, Rin I need you to wake up sweetheart."

Quinn groans, her eyes fluttering open and she sees her father sitting at her bedside, he's fully dressed in his shinobi gear. "Daddy?"

Her father places a finger over his lips, motioning her to be quiet, "You need to get up sweetheart, your sensei is here and you've been summoned by the Hokage. Pack your things quickly and quietly, at least enough for a few days."

"What, why? What's going on?"

"There's been an emergency, I can't say more than that here. I'm sorry sweetheart."

Quinn gives her father a tired smile to help comfort him, he was anxious and angry, but also resigned. "It's okay. Give me a minute, I'll be right down."

Her father pauses like he's going to say more but stops himself, instead settling for placing a kiss to her forehead before he leaves.

It doesn't take Quinn more than a minute to prepare her things and get dressed, the last of which involves strapping her borrowed katana to her back as well as Sakura's kaiken to her hip. She casts a glance over at Ino who hadn't stirred at all. "I love you sis." Quinn whispers before turning and leaving.

When she gets downstairs she sees her mother is up and standing next to her father watching him anxiously, while her sensei is leaning against the wall, all three of them waiting for her. "Morning Rin, sorry about this." Her sensei says.

"It's fine, what's going on?"

"Everything will be explained in due time, Lord Yamanaka, we should hurry." Yugao-sensei says, turning from her and addressing her father. It was always so strange for Quinn to be reminded that her father was the head of a prestigious clan, and not only that, but one of the highest ranked officials in the village as the Head of Intelligence. To her he was always just her father, but to everyone else he was one of the most powerful men in the village.

As Quinn is leaving her mother wraps her in a tight hug. "Be safe, okay."

"I will." Quinn says, still not sure what was going on.

"I love you."

"I love you too mom." And with that Quinn follows her father and sensei out into the night. The three of them leaping into the air, silently moving across the rooftops of the still sleeping village. It doesn't take long for Quinn to figure out that they're heading towards shinobi headquarters, nor to sense that several powerful ninja were currently waiting there, including the Third and her Uncle Shikaku; the jōnin commander, and her Uncle Chouza as well. Whatever was going on must be pretty serious.

Quinn follows her father and sensei into headquarters and straight to the Hokage's office. The entrance to which is currently being guarded by three ANBU. The one in the Snake mask steps forward and speaks to her father, "They're waiting for you sir."

Her father doesn't say anything to him, but he does nod his head in acknowledgment. As Quinn follows her father and sensei into the office she finally gets a good look at everyone who is there. In addition to the Hokage and her uncle Shikaku and uncle Chouza, the two Hokage's advisors, Lord Mitokado and Lady Utatane are there, as well as a jōnin level Hyūga, and if the three dogs there were any indication, a near jōnin level Inuzuka, as well as a rather tired and beat up shinobi who's chakra levels were currently dangerously low, and finally seven other jōnin level ninja.

"Inoichi," the Third greets her father, "Yugao, Rin, thank you for coming."

"We're yours to command Lord Hokage." Her father says, moving to stand by Shikaku and Chouza. Quinn's first instinct is to go stand next to her father, but she stops herself and follows her sensei who moves to an unoccupied corner of the room. She wasn't here as her father's daughter, she was here as Yugao's apprentice, she knew that much at least, so it was best to stay near her for now.

Yugao gives her an approving nod before turning her attention to the Hokage who was now beginning to speak, and Quinn follows suit, eager to get some answers.

"Two hours ago, I received word from one of our shinobi runners," Here the Third motions to the tired looking shinobi, "that Nami Yamata's cover was blown and that she had requested an immediate extraction."

Quinn can sense the concern spike in both her father and uncles as well as the two advisors at that news. The name sounded familiar to her and it takes her a moment to place it. "Wait, wasn't that mom's teammate?"

Her father nods to her, but doesn't say anything. His brow furrowed in that way that it did when he was seriously contemplating something.

"Yes, she was on a genin team with your mother Rin." The Hokage says with a kind smile, "And for the past twelve years she has also been our most reliable spy within the Village Hidden in the Clouds. Their borders are on lock down, getting in and out is exceptionally difficult, and no representative from the Land of Fire or this village has managed to get to their village or the Lightning Capital since before the start of the war. With one exception, Nami Yamata. What little we know of the comings and goings of Kumo are a result of her hard and dangerous work."

"And you're sure her cover has been blown?" Lady Utatane asks. "Communicating with her can't be easy."

Here her father speaks up, "Lord Jiraiya helped to establish the communication methods we used to keep in touch with her. Messages from her are rare, but always accurate. And certain protocols were put in place if she were ever in danger of being caught."

"Lord Yamanaka is correct, and a code red communique was sent out eight hours ago." The Third says. "Ebira here is the fastest shinobi runner we have on the lightning border, he set out from East Castle six hours ago to deliver this message."

"Six hours?" Chouza says, "That's impressive." Getting nods and murmurs of agreement from all around.

Ebira ducks his head, "Thank you sir, but I don't know if it was fast enough. Things were already escalating when I left, I don't imagine they've improved."

"Here's the situation as we currently know it," Shikaku says stepping forward and drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "During the extraction process on the Lightning side of no man's land, our agents were discovered by Kumo forces. Our forces engaged in battle with the Kumo shinobi but were outnumbered. A few managed to escape, but most of them were killed, we're looking at least at five dead. Nami Yamata was one of the few who escaped but at the lasted reported sighting of her, she was injured and forced to flee deeper into enemy territory to avoid capture."

"Time is of the essence, we should assume that the Raikage has already heard of this incident. According to Ebira, Kumo forces were already starting to assemble along the borders in response, things are escalating quickly, and if we're not careful this could be the spark that ignites into a war. But I don't believe all hope is gone yet." The Third says.

"Lord Nara," Lord Mitokado says, "You along with Lord Yamanaka and Lord Akimichi will be sent with a single platoon to the East Castle to reinforce our borders. Unfortunately we cannot send anymore."

"Once there, you three will take command of the situation. You have the Third's permission, as well as the village council's to negotiate in good faith to prevent war if at all possible." Lady Utatane says.

"If peace is not possible, Lord Nara, you are to return to the village and you Lord Yamanaka will take command of our border forces until otherwise ordered, Lord Akimichi, you will assist him." The Third says.

"Yes, Lord Hokage." Her father and uncles say in unison, and it takes all of Quinn's willpower not to scream. No, this couldn't be happening, her father… he, he had already fought, this wasn't right. They were essentially saying that if peace wasn't possible, her father was an acceptable sacrifice in place of her Uncle Shikaku.

"Meanwhile, while Lord Nara and the others try to maintain the peace with Kumo, Hizashi Hyūga, step forward." The Third says.

The Hyūga, now identified as Hizashi steps forward. "Yes Lord Hokage?"

"You will lead a team, consisting of Yugao Uzuki, Hana Inuzuka, and Rin Yamanaka behind enemy lines to retrieve Nami Yamata. Between the four of you, you are the very best trackers that this village has to offer. Hizashi, your Byakugan is one of the strongest that your clan has ever produced. Hana, you and the Haimaru brothers will provide not only extra combat support, but basic medical support as well as your own exceptional tracking capabilities. Yugao Uzuki, needs no introduction, you are all aware of her prowess as a tracker and a sensor type."

The Third then turns his attention onto Quinn, and so does the rest of the room. Her uncles are both anxious for her, her father is outright scared. Everyone else is a combination of intrigued and slightly doubtful. "Rin Yamanaka, is Lord Yamanaka's youngest daughter, and is Yugao's apprentice, I have also trained with her personally. She is her graduating class's rookie of the year and is being fast tracked into ANBU. She is also the most powerful sensor type this village has ever produced. Between the four of you, you should be able to not only find Nami Yamata but avoid any enemy shinobi."

"Hizashi, Nami Yamata must be taken by you, or not at all. Do you understand?" Lady Utatane asks.

Hizashi nods his head. "I do."

"Nami Yamata was the heart of our spy ring in Kumo, if she is captured by the enemy it will destroy everything and we will lose not only her, but every agent we have in Lightning. Kumo truly will be lost to us. That cannot happen." Lord Mitokado says.

"Understood sir."

"Good," The Third says, "You and your team will follow along as part of the platoon accompanying Lord Nara. Once you reach East Castle, you are to split off and begin your mission as soon as possible. All of you, you leave in thirty minutes, good luck to you all."

"Come on kid, let's meet the team." Yugao says with a reassuring smile, but Quinn can sense that she's nervous too.

Still, Quinn nods her head and allows herself to be lead away. She catches eyes with her father and he gives her a look of regret. She gives him her own most reassuring smile in return, but she isn't sure how convincing it is, if at all.

"Yugao, it's good to see you again." Hizashi says with a bow.

"You too Hizashi, how are Naomi and your son?"

"Naomi is doing better, thank you, the doctors say she is in remission again and that she should make a full recovery. They're hopeful that the disease won't return this time. As for Neji, he has really taken to shinobi life, I expect he'll be taking the chūnin exams this next time it's held here."

Yugao smiles, "I'm glad to hear that."

"Yugao." Hana says, a scowl on her face as she approaches them.

"Hana." Yugao returns just as coldly.

Quinn almost rolls her eyes, because it was all just an act, which was proven not even a second later when the two women grin and then hug each other.

"It's great to see you again. I hardly ever get to see you since you've joined ANBU, and then you randomly quit to take on an apprentice, what the hell? I thought you loved ANBU?"

"Loves not quite the word I would go with, but yeah. This is just temporary, until she makes chūnin, then I'll be back. And speaking of my apprentice, Hizashi, Hana this is Rin. Rin this is Hizashi, we've served together before and this is Hana, one of my best friends from the academy as well as heir to the Inuzuka clan."

Quinn bows, "It's a pleasure to meet you both."

Hizashi chuckles, "The pleasure is mine, and no need to be so formal. Leave all that pomp and ceremony to the elders, we'll be serving together soon, no reason not to be friendly."

"So you're Rin Yamanaka, huh?" Hana asks with an amused grin, "My brother Kiba won't shut up about you."

"Oh… um…" Quinn wasn't sure how to respond to that.

"It's not a bad thing, he's determined to surpass you, I think the fact that a girl is a better shinobi than he is has done more to help him take his training seriously than anything else. Never mind the fact that he's never beaten me and is nowhere near mom's league in terms of strength." Hana laughs, "It's nice to finally have a face for the name."

"Thanks… I guess, and Kiba is… he's definitely spirited."

"He's a brat. Don't get me wrong, he's my brother and I love him, but he's definitely a brat." Hana laughs.

"So you went to the academy with sensei?"

"Yeah, until she went and graduated early, the show off." Hana growls playfully, "But we kept in touch. I hear you're quite the prodigy yourself."

"We better hope so… if this mission is as dangerous as it sounds." Quinn says softly.

"Hey, don't worry about it alright. Like any mission, it's no single shinobi who completes it, but a team. We'll all look out for one another." Hizashi says.

"And you wouldn't be here if the Hokage and myself didn't have complete confidence in you." Yugao says, "I wanted to start you off on a couple of easier C-Rank missions, unfortunately, the needs of the village take precedence and once you're in ANBU, you don't pick missions you get assigned. So, this is still good practice for what it'll be like."

"Yes, sensei…" Quinn's eyes drift over to her father who is in deep conversation with his team.

"You don't need to worry about him either." Hizashi says with a kind smile, easily reading her concern. "Your father and his team were chosen for this mission for a reason. Their reputation alone and the fact that it's all three of the Ino-Shika-Chou trio will make Kumo think twice before they try anything. You only see him as your father and his friends, but those three men are living legends."

Quinn nods her head, "Thanks… I just…"

"I know how you feel." Hana says, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I've lost count the number of times I've had to watch my mother go off on a dangerous mission. Have faith, focus on your own mission, and everything will work out."

"We should work out our strategy now, that way when the time comes we can just break off and get to work." Yugao says.

"Right, recommendations?" Hizashi asks.

"I suggest a standard diamond formation." Hana says. "I'll take the lead with the Haimaru brothers, we can track by scent and point us in the general direction we should go. Yugao and Rin should take the right and left flanks respectively. We'll be traveling north and west, so that will place Rin as the least experienced member of our group in the most protected position, and as sensor types, they can sweep the area for specifics. And you Hizashi should bring up the rear. Your Byakugan is going to be of most use at close range, so that will allow you to keep an eye out for enemy ambushes as well as the ability to assist any of us should we come under fire. I'll also have one of the brother's run alongside you for support."

"Sounds reasonable to me, any objections?" Hizashi asks.

"Just one, and I truly am sorry about this." Yugao says, and Quinn can sense the regret and hesitation radiating from her sensei as she says this. "Rin should take the right flank."

Hizashi's brow furrows, "Any particular reason?"

When Yugao answers she isn't looking at Hizashi but Rin, "Rin is a much stronger sensor than I am. I might miss something, she won't. I know it puts her on the Lightning side of the run, and I regret that, but with her gift none of them should be able to get close enough for that to matter. If someone does approach it'll be no real issue for us to switch sides."

"I hear what you're saying, but I'm reluctant to place someone so green in such a dangerous position." Hizashi says, he had doubts about her coming on the mission at all. She was around the same age as his son and she had no mission experience at all, if the Hokage hadn't ordered it, he would never have accepted her on this team at this point in time, no matter how skilled or seemingly necessary.

"I don't need to be protected, I'm here to do a job and sensei is correct, I am the stronger sensor type. I don't mind taking the right flank, and honestly, I'm not trying to be arrogant or anything, but if someone on their side is able to sneak up on me, then it honestly won't matter what my position is anyway." Quinn says.

Hana gets a cocky grin that belies the concern and doubt she is feeling, "Well you heard the kid. Besides, she's gotta be something else if she's here anyway."

Hizashi is silent for a moment before he nods his head, "Very well, Rin, you shall take the right flank."

"Excuse me, Hizashi, Yugao, Hana, may I have a moment with my daughter." Her father interrupts, followed closely by her uncles.

The three of them bow. "Of course Lord Yamanaka." Hizashi says, with a nod.

"Rin, we're going to head out, catch up with us when you're finished, okay?" Yugao says.

"Yes sensei, I'll be quick."

Her father leads her aside. "How are you feeling sweetheart, are you okay?"

Quinn chuckles softly, "I'm a little scared to be honest."

"I know, but you're going to be okay. Just be smart and careful, and stay close to your sensei and your team and everything will be okay."

"I'm not worried about me, I'm worried about you. If uncle Shikaku can't talk them down then…"

"Then I'll just have to talk them down then, won't I." Shikaku says with a grin. "Don't underestimate us old guys, I promise I won't let anything happen to your father, alright."

"And don't forget, I'll be there too." Chouza adds.

"I don't want anything to happen to the two of you either." Quinn says, feeling guilty.

"You don't need to worry Rin, we can take care of ourselves. You need to focus on your mission, because believe it or not, yours is the more dangerous one." Chouza says.

"Chouza is right." Her father says, kneeling down in front of her. "This is your first mission and you're being asked to infiltrate behind enemy lines, I don't like it, none of us do, and it's not just because you're my daughter. This is unheard of, you don't send a green shinobi into a situation like this. You need to be cautious. I don't care what anyone says, I don't care about the damage it could do, I don't care about any of that, if it gets bad, you get out of there and get to me, do you understand."

"Daddy, I-"

"I agree with your father, consider it an order from the jōnin commander and someone who loves you and your family. If things look bad, get you and your team out of there." Shikaku says, his voice calm but serious.

"I'll do my best."

Her father sighs and exchanges looks with her uncles, "Note how she didn't actually promise." He says with a wry grin. "Rin, all of this aside, I am so proud of you, please know that as well. I believe in you sweetheart, just please, be so very careful."

Quinn ducks her head, "Thanks… I'll try not to let you down."

Inoichi pulls her into a hug, "You never have."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Lord Hokage?" Snake says, moving to stand by the Third when the last of the shinobi leave for their mission.

The Third doesn't say anything, instead just giving a slight nod of his head in acknowledgement.

"Is it wise to send the girl, this mission is dangerous, a more experienced shinobi might be a better choice, especially considering what we need her for."

"I've weighed the risks carefully, and I do believe that this is the correct course of action. I need to set Rin apart, if she succeeds then that will give me more leeway in sending her on future missions, they'll know what she's capable of and it won't be surprising when she is asked to take on something more dangerous than usual. If she fails, then that will fall back on me, and Rin will be able to continue on at an acceptable rate. Things are already progressing on schedule, success can only help her and failure will not set her back. We have nothing to lose here."

"And if she dies?"

"I have placed her with Hizashi Hyūga and Hana Inuzuka, both have an incredibly strong sense of loyalty, too strong for them to allow Rin to come to any harm, and Yugao knows how essential the girl is, she'll die before she allows any harm to befall Rin."

"Still, things can happen."

Here the Third turns to face Snake, "If Rin does die, then she does not hold the strength necessary to do what must be done, and the plan would fail anyway and we would still have to start over. And besides, I have faith in her, Rin has a remarkable strength within her. She won't fail, in fact, I expect she'll exceed my every expectation."

"As you say Lord Hokage, still… a contingency plan wouldn't hurt."

"Hmm."

 **s**

 **xXx- -xXx**

 **s**

 **Author's Note: So yes, the Hizashi Hyuga in this chapter is Neji's father. One of the consequences of Quinn being in this world is he isn't killed. I don't go into it in the story because there's no reason to, nobody knows that without Quinn/Rin, Hizashi Hyuga dies, but here's how and why he survived. In the version without Quinn/Rin, Kumo and Konoha end their war in a virtual tie, maybe with Konoha slightly ahead, but neither side can really call themselves the victor or afford to keep fighting. So when the Hyuga incident happens and the Lighting Village representative is killed while abducting Hinata, Konoha is not in a position to fight a war over one man. Hizashi's sacrifice maintains the peace saving countless lives.**

 **In this version, if you'll think back to chapter three or four during the New Year's fireworks, Quinn/Rin senses an assassination attempt giving forewarning to her father who is able to capture one of the assassins. In the world without Quinn/Rin the assassination attempt still happens and is still thwarted but none of the assailants are captured, in this world they are. The information they gathered from the assassin was enough for Konoha to turn the war around and when peace was finally declared, Konoha was the clear victor and Kumo was at its weakest in its entire history. They still attempted to kidnap Hinata, but this time, when they were caught and the abductor killed, it didn't matter what Kumo demanded, they were in no position to keep fighting, Konoha was. Konoha could have continued the war, so as a result Kumo had to suck it up and take its lumps as it were, because at the time they were lucky that the Third was still willing to negotiate peace with them. If they threatened war over it would have been disastrous for them. Kumo actually lost even more after the incident and Hizashi was spared having to sacrifice himself for his brother.**

 **On the plus side to all of this, Hizashi lives, as does his wife, and so Neji still has both of his parents. Neji's mom is never mentioned in the series to my knowledge, but I imagine her to have been ill most of her life, when Hizashi died it was a huge emotional blow that took a lot of the fight out of her and when her illness came back worse than before, it was too much for her and she passed away that same year leaving Neji without either of his parents. (This is my head canon for Neji's mother in the actual series) The down side to Hizashi's survival, however, is Kumo and Konoha relations are even more strained than they originally were.**


	27. Chapter 26

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Glee. This is a little bit shorter chapter than usual, and for that I apologize, I just felt that where I end this chapter was the best place to do so.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 26-xXx**

 **s**

Things were tense as they ran, jumping from tree top to tree top. You wouldn't think that traveling like that would allow for a very fast pace of movement but her home wasn't called the village hidden in the leaves for nothing. The same way that Suna could travel unhindered through the desert and Kiri could move through the mists as if it were clear as day, Konoha had perfected traveling through the forest.

They moved in formation, as fast as the lead team could go. Nine teams total counting her own unit, which carried an additional fourth person for a total of 28 People. Her father's team, the seven teams of three forming the platoon that was at their disposal and then there was her team, currently at the back, being led by Hana and her three dogs. They had been running all day, but even at their current pace, with minimum breaks for food and rest they were still a day out from East Castle.

Quinn found herself in a bit of awe at Hana. She had to admit that she had always kind of underestimated the Inuzuka clan, granted her only interaction was with Kiba, but still, how ninja-like could a dog be, really? Apparently pretty freaking ninja, the dogs had no trouble keeping up and in fact moved and interweaved between the team with such grace and agility that it left Quinn in a bit of awe. She knew about ninken, trained animals that assisted their ninja masters, the Inuzuka clan being the most famous clan to utilize them, but by no means the only ninja to do so, but Quinn kind of always thought they'd be more of a hindrance than a help.

She catches her sensei's glance at out of the corner of her eye, and her sensei gives her a grin, and signs at her, _"Pretty cool, huh?"_

 _"Yeah, look at them move."_

 _"Never underestimate an opponent who is confident enough to bring an animal into a ninja fight, it might be the last thing you ever do."_

Quinn nods her head, _"Maybe I should look into getting one."_

Her sensei signs something to her but Quinn isn't quite able to catch it, she was picking up shinobi-sign-language fairly quickly, but she wasn't fluent yet.

Quinn furrows her brow, _"Repeat, please."_

It takes her a few tries but is finally able to make out what her sensei was saying, _"It is possible though I wouldn't recommend it unless it's part of a summon contract. Most ninja and ninken train their entire lives together to reach the level that you see before you. There are exceptions of course, Kakashi Hatake has a couple of ninken dogs that he utilizes to great effect, but people like him are the exception."_

 _"Sorry, sensei, I'm still trying to get this down."_ Quinn signs, after she finally gets what was being said.

 _"Don't worry about it, you're picking it up just fine."_ Her sensei signs back with a wink.

A few minutes later Quinn is able to sense the rest of the group halting, and Hana holds up her hand motioning for them to stop a moment later. The entire platoon drops out of the trees, with her father and his group landing in the middle. "We'll break here for the night, we leave at first light." Shikaku says.

The teams then break off to make camp.

"They must be expecting the worst." Hizashi says.

"What do you mean?" Quinn asks.

"We're stopping for the night, the fact is, if we picked up the pace and traveled through the night, we could make East Castle by dawn, but we would all be exhausted. By resting, when we reach the Castle tomorrow, we'll still be tired but we'll at least be in a condition to fight." Yugao answers.

It doesn't take them long to set up camp, but no campfires were allowed just in case enemy scouts had been deployed, so cold, dry rations were the meal of the night. Not that it mattered to Quinn, she was too stressed out to eat more than a few bites anyway.

"So…" Hana hums, curious, "You're supposed to be this super powerful sensor type, but how strong are you, really?"

"I too find myself intrigued, Yugao even said you outclass her as a sensor and she's arguably one of the strongest the village has ever had." Hizashi adds.

Quinn is silent, not sure quite what to say. People always made a big deal of it, but she had always had this ability, at least here in this world, she didn't really know how to describe it. It was just a part of who she was now.

"She picked me out of a crowd while I was stalking her, so that should give you some idea." Yugao says, before nodding at her, "go ahead kid."

Quinn hesitates for a moment before finally deciding to just go with a general description of what she was currently capable of.

"If I'm familiar with someone's chakra signature, I can pick them out of any crowd no matter how much they suppress their chakra. You would literally have to cut off your chakra, remove it completely if you want to hide from me. If I'm not concentrating, as long as I'm not suppressing my gift, I have a range of about a five mile radius with near perfect accuracy, if you have chakra and you're within that range, I'll know you're there. As for my full range… I don't know. I've never needed to test it before, but I do know that it extends throughout the entire village no matter where I am, it's just a matter of… focusing it I guess, and interpreting the information. Judging by their reserves I can also usually estimate with some accuracy how strong someone is. Though it isn't perfect, sensei for example, when we first met she was suppressing her chakra, I knew she was strong but I severely underestimated just how strong and my friend Naruto has more chakra than anyone I've ever met, but he's only a genin right now so, like I said, not always accurate but I'm usually pretty close. I can also sense people's emotions through their chakra and I'm also starting to be able to pick up on people's chakra affinities, I need to concentrate on them or else be fairly familiar with them, but, it's not hard."

Hana whistles, "Cool, do me."

"Buy me dinner first." Quinn quips without thinking before turning bright red.

Hana goes red for a second too before busting out laughing, followed closely by Yugao, and even Hizashi starts to chuckle.

"I… um, what I mean is…"

"Alright, it's a date." Hana says with a wink.

"First the ramen girl and now Hana, you sure do like the older ladies." Yugao teases.

"Ramen girl? Now this I have to hear." Hana laughs.

"There's this girl at Ichiraku's Ramen Stand, really cute, brunette too now that I think about it." Yugao says with a pointed and amused look at Hana. "Rin and I went there the day we met, because, and I quote there were _other reasons_ to go there."

"Awe, what's her name?" Hana asks, looking at Rin.

It was obvious to Quinn, even without her ability to sense emotions, that the teasing was all in good fun and there was no maliciousness behind it, but it was still hitting a really sore spot for her. Back in her old world she had a horrible track record with relationships. Pregnant and homeless at sixteen, cheater and cheated on, called unfeeling and dumped at a funeral, dead, trying to stop a wedding so that she could tell the girl she loved that she was in fact, in love with her. Knowing that in doing so she had every chance of being kicked out of her home again because of it. And in this world, she didn't even have the chance to screw up a relationship here. With her secrets she could never be with anyone in any real way, ever. If Quinn knew one thing about relationships it was this, secrets killed them. Besides, with her chosen career and the path it was taking… "It doesn't matter," Quinn says quietly as she stands up, "I'll probably be dead in the next year or so anyway."

"Rin, wait-" Yugao says, feeling extremely guilty.

"It's fine, if you would all please excuse me, I need some air." Quinn doesn't wait for any kind of response, instead leaping into the trees and putting as much distance between herself and the camp as she logistically could. It was her own fault, she had been the one to open herself up to that with her stupid comment, it was just such an obvious opening and as she said it, it sounded exactly like something Santana would have said. She just needed to clear her head, calm down, and then head back and apologize.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Hey kid." Yugao says softly, landing next to her on the branch she was sitting on and standing next to her.

"I'm sorry sensei… that was unacceptable behavior on my part."

"No, I'm the one who's sorry. You know it was just teasing, right?"

Quinn nods, "I know, I… it doesn't matter, I overreacted."

"Rin… you've chosen a difficult path but…" Yugao trails off uncertainly.

"I asked daddy about it," Quinn interrupts, "the highest death rate within ANBU is the first two years. If you can make it past that point, your survival rate starts to improve, but the odds are not in my favor. I know that, I signed up for it… it was my choice. I have no right to be sad or depressed with this life, it's greedy."

"It's not greedy to want more from life than just death and killing." Yugao says softly. The worst part was Rin was right, even under normal circumstances ANBU had a high mortality rate.

Maybe for a normal person, Quinn concedes in her mind, but this was her second chance. She had died and had been granted this life, she had been given a family that loved her, two best friends who meant the world to her and a sister whom words couldn't adequately describe how much she meant to her. She made a promise that if she was spared that she would do better, that she would be better. She promised that she would protect her sister from the worst this life had to offer. If a life of killing and death was the price she had to pay, then in her case, after all she had been given, it was greedy of her to ask for more.

"You're angry and feel guilty, don't." Quinn says, looking up at her sensei. "I chose this and… you've been really great so far, I've learned a lot from you and I know you're giving me my best shot at survival. I just need to suck it up, right?"

Yugao is silent for a moment as she contemplates what to say next. "You've found a reason to fight, your sister, your friends, and that can be a powerful thing, but, you're missing something. Something that in my opinion is just as important and that I don't think you've found yet."

"What am I missing?"

"A reason to live. I'm looking at you right now and I have no doubt that you'll throw yourself completely into a battle, that you won't freeze. No doubt in my mind. You have a reason to fight, but no reason to live and… you need one."

"I'm not suicidal." Quinn snaps, she had been through too much, fought too hard for anyone who didn't know her whole story to ever say that about her.

"I never said you were, I'm not saying you'll be reckless or that you won't be smart on this mission, I'm saying that if you're going to do this, you need something for you. A reason, a goal, an ambition. I think you don't see a future for yourself, and it's not that you want to die, it's that you expect to. So you have nothing to live for, I think you're in a mindset where you believe your death is inevitable and so you're doing everything you can to make sure that it has meaning."

Quinn is silent because what could she say to that, really? Yugao-sensei was right, she didn't see a future for herself and she did expect to die soon. Most likely bloody and alone.

"You're so busy fighting and growing stronger for others that you've neglected to find a reason to fight for yourself. You need a goal Rin, something beyond just protecting those you love, because without one, you will die, and it may be just the way you would want it to be, protecting those you love. But the will to live… it's a powerful thing, why die for those you love when you can live for them."

"I just… I don't know how, I… this whole concept of being a ninja terrifies me, and it's even worse because the people I love are… you mentioned that first day, you asked me how long would it be before my sister and friends are out there fighting, killing, dying. I have that answer, today, my sister and her team, Naruto, Sakura, they're all taking their first C-Rank missions today. And no, of course I don't expect it to be hardcore combat missions right off the bat, I mean Naruto and Sakura are just delivering a package to the fire capital, pretty safe, but it's a start. It's that first step away from innocence. And what about my father, if Uncle Shikaku… Lord Nara can't negotiate a peace with Kumo, my father is considered an acceptable sacrifice so that he can live… I can't see beyond that, I can't focus on anything beyond that… and I am so sick with worry, my stomach… I can't eat, I doubt I'll sleep, my mind is racing with scenario after scenario of what might happen to him and what I can do to stop it."

Yugao finally sits down next to Rin and places a hand on her shoulder. "I can't promise everything will be okay, but, I can promise that if things go to shit, we won't leave, we'll stay here and I'll help you protect your father."

"Really?"

"Yeah… I don't know how much we'll actually be able to do, but we won't abandon him, okay."

Quinn nods her head, grateful, because she honestly had no intention of leaving no matter what anyone said if her father had to stay. The fact that her sensei would back her on it was actually a bit of a relief. "Thank you, sensei."

Yugao doesn't say anything, she just nods in response. The two of them sit together in the silence and the dark. Yet in spite of the tense situation, and the uncertainty ahead, it's comfortable between them. Yugao knew her promise was a violation of a direct order from the Third, but right now she didn't care. If things went bad here she was to get Rin out of there no matter the cost. But she wouldn't, she would do everything she could to protect her student of course, but if this is where Rin was going to make a stand, possibly die, then that was her choice and it held so much more meaning than what was in store for her.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

The tension built as they continued to run, it was almost daybreak and East Castle wasn't far. Quinn was doing her best to just focus on her breathing, she needed to meditate and badly, but it was just a little bit difficult to do while running. Her talk with her sensei last night had helped a bit, and neither Hizashi nor Hana had thought any less of her for her outburst last night, and in fact, Hana had waved off her apology and offered her own.

She couldn't think right now, she needed to be mindless, thinking wouldn't help her right now. So she focused on her breathing, in and out, in and out, steady and smooth as she leapt through the trees with her team. But her concentration is broken in an instant when she picks up the many chakra sources ahead.

 _"Senei!"_ She signs.

 _"I know, I just felt it too, can you tell how many, I'm still too far away, it's all one massive chakra source to me right now."_

Quinn nods her head and concentrates, releasing completely her hold on her gift. Her senses expand and she is instantly aware of each individual chakra source ahead of them and the longer she focuses the more she is able to pick up. There were two large forces ahead facing off against each other, on the plus side, they weren't fighting, at least not anymore. However, one force greatly outnumbered the other and with the way the groups were concentrated, one surrounding the other, she sincerely doubted that it was her side that held the superior numbers. Even with the reinforcements that were coming the leaf shinobi were currently outnumbered two to one.

The one thing that could be said to be going in leaf's favor right now was the fact that it wasn't all high level ninja on the other side. It was mostly chunin and a few jonin, at what a quick estimate on her part figured it to be around two chunin for every jonin. Not great odds, but, assuming she was at least mostly accurate, they were outnumbered but not necessarily out classed.

Quinn continues to focus on the other side as she signs at her sensei, _"Even with us bringing reinforcements we're still outnumbered two to one. But I'm not sensing anyone super strong, mostly chūnin and jōnin. We're outnumbered, but it could be worse…"_

Quinn pauses, her heart catching in her throat. This was bad, this was really, really bad. She just had to tempt fate.

"Rin?" Hizashi asks quietly, breaking the silence.

"Call for a halt, my father and Lord Nara need to know this." Quinn says, coming to a stop. She then drops down to the ground and takes a meditative position. Trying to enhance and focus her abilities the best she could. She, a mere genin, was calling for a halt, she needed as much information on this as she could get to justify this kind of breach in protocol. She filters out the noise and fellow leaf shinobi as Hana rushes ahead to get her father and uncles.

"Rin, what's-" Hizashi starts to ask again, but Yugao hushes him, not wanting Rin's concentration broken. It had to be big if her student was doing something like this.

"What's going on?" Shikaku asks, appearing a few seconds later, followed by his team. The platoon having come to a complete stop and starting to gather around.

"Rin, are you okay?" Her father asks.

Quinn looks up at her father and says one word that changes everything about the Ino-Shika-Chou's battle plan, "Jinchūriki."

 **s**

 **xXx-xXx**

 **s**

 **So, we don't really see it in the early anime too much, but Jinchuriki are supposed to be their villages ultimate weapon. We see it a bit with Gaara, a lot of Suna's strategy relies on him during the invasion, but it never really comes across just how devastating they're supposed to be. They're supposed to be battle altering forces of nature, and the villages with them are in a bit of a cold war state. They don't fully unleash them for fear of them being unleashed on them. So the fact that there is one waiting for them is huge and made the mission that much more dangerous.**


	28. Chapter 27

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or Naruto.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 27-xXx**

 **s**

Inoichi shares a glance with Chouza as the two of them stood off to the side watching Rin, his daughter sitting in meditation trying to discern the exact numbers and power of the enemy forces they were about to encounter. Yugao was sitting across from her, helping to guide and focus her meditation. As much as he was suspicious of her appointment, there was no denying the fact that his daughter couldn't have asked for a better teacher. They knew that as they got closer the few sensor types among them, would be able to discern more, he himself as well as Yugao Uzuki were both able to sense the large force ahead of them. But from their current distance it all felt like one massive chakra source.

Rin however, even from this distance, was able to pick up the individual sources of chakra. While Rin gathered information on the enemy, everyone else was to lie in wait here and suppress their chakra to the best of their abilities, that way they hopefully hid their presence from Kumo's own sensor ninja.

It should be impossible for them to get any solid information on the enemy from their current distance, but his Rin seemed to routinely change what was and wasn't actually possible. Shikaku and he had both been surprised by the distance and accuracy that Rin was able to read the enemy. They knew she was a powerful sensor but this was the first time they were in a situation to see just how powerful.

The fact that there was a jinchūriki waiting for them was cause enough to have the platoon pause and reevaluate the situation, Rin had made the correct choice in calling for a stop. Jinchūriki were a village's ultimate weapon, and Kumo had two. They needed to learn as much as possible, because a jinchūriki changed everything on the battlefield. The fact that Rin could also give them a working position, power, and numbers of their enemy, before the enemy could probably even sense their approach was an advantage that Shikaku was eager to exploit as well, because up until now they had been going in blind.

Shikaku comes up to him and Chouza, "How is she?" Shikaku asks.

Inoichi glances over at his daughter, "Still working. Yugao is helping her focus, but it's a lot of information to be gathered and sifted through. It may take her a while."

Shikaku nods his head, and looks over at Rin. "Have you thought about the potential consequences of all of this? She was right in informing us, but it certainly shines a spotlight on her that she doesn't need."

"Agreed." Chouza adds, "She was already a curiosity among our forces, but now that they know what she is capable of… people talk, even shinobi."

"Word of her abilities is going to spread, they're already strong but with each telling they'll grow, it's only a matter of time before people outside of Konoha learn of what she's capable of." Shikaku says, placing a comforting hand on his best friend's shoulder. "She's going to be a target. Our enemies won't be happy to learn that we potentially have a shinobi that can pick out their ninja's positions and strengths the way that she can."

Inoichi sighs and rubs his brow, "I know, I'm racking my brain trying to figure out how to stop it. I knew that her reputation would grow as she continued to take on missions, especially with the path she is taking but… I have no idea how to mitigate this."

"We can send out a general order, classify any information regarding her, but like Chouza said, even shinobi talk. It'll stem the rumors for a time but it won't stop them." Shikaku says, troubled as well. His brilliant mind contemplating not only Rin's situation, but the larger implications, as well as their current mission.

All three men's heads turn to face Rin when she lets out a small, tired gasp. "Genin Yamanaka?" Shikaku asks, wishing that he didn't need to be quite so formal with someone whom he'd known their entire life.

"Sir…" Rin staggers to her feet, Yugao helping to steady her. "I apologize for the wait, I can make my report now."

Shikaku nods his head, wishing this could be done a little more privately, but time was of the essence and he needed the information now. He pulls out a map of the area and he as well as Inoichi, Chouza, Rin, and Yugao surround it. "Alright, proceed genin."

"Right, before I begin please note that while the numbers are accurate, my estimate of their power might not be and that as far as the jinchūriki is concerned I can only tell you they are there and nothing more."

"Question, how do you know that they're a jinchūriki?" Chouza asks, curious.

"It's… it's hard to explain, but it's like…" Rin twirls her hand as she tries to figure out the best way to describe it. "It's like a single entity but with two distinctly different chakra sources. Both of them are massive and so entwined that it can be hard to separate, but… one is… it feels like normal chakra, the other one is so… unrefined, wild and furious. They're so closely linked it's hard to separate them, but at the same time there's no way they can be from the same thing, despite sharing a source… it's… I'm sorry, that's the best way I can describe it, I know it doesn't make a lot of sense. I just know they feel the exact same way that Naru… that he does."

"It's fine Rin, really." Inoichi reassures her.

"Can you give us an estimate of how powerful they are, do you know if it's the two tails or eight tails?" Shikaku asks, he had info on both, though it was painfully little, but he could still plan better if he knew which jinchūriki was waiting for them.

"I'm sorry, there's no way for me to know that. I can usually estimate a shinobi's strength based on their chakra, but the system's not perfect, and jinchūriki throw that system right out the window. I can give you a rough estimate on the other shinobi but the tailed beast is too big a variable for me to determine how strong they are on their own."

"Alright," Shikaku says, "if you could give me a rundown of the numbers of the enemy shinobi as well as our own, and the strength of anyone whom stood out to you."

"Yes sir." Rin begins to go over the map with Shikaku, pointing out numbers and strength, taking careful note to show the exact location of the enemy jinchūriki. But Inoichi was too distracted to pay too much attention and he noted that Yugao was too. Both of them were carefully watching the surrounding shinobi who were listening in intently with a lot of focus on the strange genin who had been allowed to accompany this mission. He catches Yugao's eye and look passes between them that shows they are in agreement of one thing at the very least, Rin's days of anonymity were over and that wasn't a good thing.

Yugao gives him a slight nod of the head indicating that she would do everything in her power to protect his daughter and he nods back, accepting her promise.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Hana gives a low appreciative whistle as she absentmindedly scratches behind the ears of one of her nin-ken. Completely focused on Rin Yamanaka, every second the girl seemed to grow more and more interesting to Hana. "Definitely more to that girl than meets the eye." She says quietly to Hizashi who was standing next to her.

"Agreed. And because of that we're going in a lot less blind than we thought we were. Though it does make things a little more interesting for me as well, I may have to stay behind on the search and rescue mission."

Hana looks at him a little startled by that declaration, "What, why?"

"Jinchūriki are best combated by a master of the sealing arts, the caliber of which is extremely rare in this day and age, and certainly not to be found among our current group of shinobi, no matter how skilled they may be. Sealing techniques at that level are becoming more and more of a lost art. As such, the Byakugan and gentle fist style are best suited to fight a chakra powerful foe like a jinchūriki, it becomes a matter of how fast they can reopen their tenkestu versus how fast I can close them. With the right support it should be manageable, but… who knows really."

"Damn… didn't think of that."

"Still, even if that is what comes to pass, between yourself, Yugao, and definitely that girl over there, finding our target shouldn't prove too much of a challenge for you."

Hana nods her head as she continues to study the young blonde, "That girl, certainly is something."

Hizashi hum's in agreement, watching the young girl known as Rin Yamanaka as well, very much aware that he was quite possibly looking at the next legend that would come out of Konoha.

"Cute too." Hana adds after a moment.

Hizashi quirks an eyebrow at her, "You going to take her up on that dinner?" He teases, a little amused. The Inuzuka clan had never been known for shyness or subtlety.

Hana hums as she considers the question, before finally answering with, "Maybe I am."

"With her abilities, we'll need to look after her even more now. It'll be a while before the enemy learns of her but even still, she may be our best chance at locating Nami Yamata." Hizashi says after a few moments.

"Leave that to me." Hana says.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"I'm sorry, that's all I was able to determine, I hope it helps." Quinn says after finishing her report.

Her uncle Shikaku and Chouza both chuckle, and she can even sense the amusement coming from her father and sensei through their anxiety.

"Rin, I've had ninja teams come back from month long reconnaissance missions with less information than what you have just given me. This was game changing and I can now tailor my plans to fit the situation. You did very well, I'm proud of you." Her uncle Shikaku says.

Her father wraps an arm around her and places a kiss to her forehead. "I'm proud of you too. Why don't you go take a rest, focusing like that had to be pretty taxing."

Quinn nods her head, focusing and sifting through all of that information and chakra had left her with a bit of a headache.

"Everyone, prepare your things, we head out in thirty minutes." Shikaku calls out, before concentrating back on the map.

Her father gives her one last affectionate squeeze before releasing her and joining his teammate, her uncle Chouza sending her a good natured wink before doing the same.

"C'mon kid, you did great."

"I just hope it was enough…" Quinn trails off uncertainly.

Yugao rolls her eyes good-naturedly at her apprentice, "Kid, you just became our villages most powerful intelligence asset, after word of this gets out, mission's like this are going to become a lot more common for you, every infiltration and reconnaissance team is going to want you. Just look around, everyone is watching you."

Quinn glances around and is very disconcerted to see that Yugao wasn't exaggerating, just about everyone was watching her and appraising her, talking quietly amongst themselves. "Oh…"

"Yeah."

"Why do I feel like that's not a good thing?"

"Depends on your perspective, on the one hand, just take a moment and feel around, you've boosted the morale of everyone here. Information is a ninja's best weapon and you just gave our village's greatest strategists everything on our enemy but the kitchen sink."

Quinn lets her ability wash over the group for a moment and her sensei was right, hope was flying high in this group, which was a stark and startling contrast to the grim feeling of acceptance that had been prevalent when they had first set out.

"Downside to that is you're becoming a known entity. Word of you and your skills will get out eventually and when it does you'll have essentially painted a giant X on your back. When this mission is over we'll need to concentrate your training on counter assassination."

"I… that's a little disheartening." Quinn finishes lamely, trying very hard not let that little bit of information overwhelm her.

"To say the least, on the plus side, I've got your back and there's not a shinobi here who won't lay down their life for you."

"That doesn't necessarily make me feel any better… I don't want anyone to die for me, ever." I'm not worth it, Quinn thinks to herself quietly.

Yugao gives her a sad smile, as she leads her back over to their team, "No, I guess it wouldn't."

"Hey, you doing okay, you look a little tired?" Hana asks.

Quinn nods her head, "I'm fine, just a bit of a headache. If I could just rest for a few minutes I'll be ready to go." Quinn says, addressing that last part to Hizashi.

"Of course."

"Here," Hana says, handing her a little blue tablet, "This should help you feel better and help get rid of that headache."

"What is it?" Quinn asks, though she pops the little tablet without a second thought, immediately her headache begins to lessen and she feels more energized.

"Low yield chakra pill of my own making, my specialty is veterinary, but I'm still a fully qualified medic-nin and I like to dabble in various remedies. Most ninja's bodies aren't accustomed to even a standard chakra pill, let alone some of the more specialized and modified ones, unless you're like the Inuzuka clan or the Akimichi clan and have trained your body to handle it, most chakra pills will overwhelm a person with energy and their own chakra will tear them apart from all the excess energy. That little blue tablet is one that I designed that is safe for the general populous."

"Thanks." Quinn says, intrigued by all of this. Anytime she learned something new about chakra, especially when it wasn't directed towards killing someone, it always fascinated her.

"Hey, boy." Quinn says softly, when one of the Haimaru Brothers, nuzzles up beside her, placing his head under hand for her to pet. She scratches behind his ear and he pants happily, his tail wagging in delight at the attention.

"That's San, the youngest of the brothers. Don't let his size fool you, he's really just a big puppy, but he's also brave and loyal, and he's going to be your partner for the rest of this mission." Hana says with a grin, as the other two dogs take a spot on each side of their master.

"Oh… um, that's…"

"I think that's a good idea." Hizashi says.

"And I concur." Yugao adds, glad Hizashi and Hana were on the same page as her.

"It's just that… I'm still learning to reign myself in when working with a group, I just… if we get into a fight I don't want him to get caught in the crossfire… my fire jutsu are…"

"Don't worry about him, he's smart and nimble, and besides that, he and the brothers are trained to avoid friendly fire, as long as you don't actively try to roast my dog he'll be fine."

Quinn sighs, sensing no matter how she protested this was going to happen. It was both a relief that they were all trying to look out for her and a little galling that they thought she couldn't handle herself. However she settles for taking it in the good spirit that it was meant and she kneels down in front of San, "Well boy, it seems you're stuck with me for now. I hope that's okay."

San gives a happy little yip before he begins to lick her face.

"Alright, alright," Quinn laughs, pushing him back, "I'll take that as a yes."

"See, a big puppy." Hana laughs, "Now San, you know what you need to do right boy, look out for each other, okay?"

San gives a low woof of acknowledgement.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn and the rest of the platoon had cleared the tree line nearly an hour ago and had been running ever since. During the last war between Konoha and Kumo, the three nations that acted as a buffer between the two giants had been all but destroyed and so as part of the treaty ending the war, the Lands of Marshes and Fields had been annexed by Konoha and the Land of Groves had been annexed by Lightning. A neutral zone only going ten miles deep but spanning the boarders from Tempest Bay to the North and the Mist Sea to the south and east, was all that separated Fire and Lightning, making them the only two of the big five to not have other nations to act as a buffer between them.

The neutral zone was heavily guarded by both sides, and no one crossed the neutral zone without great personal risk. Because of Konoha's victory in the war, the main fortification of the area, Castle East, which used to be the capital of the Land of Fields and where the first of the peace treaties had been signed, was theirs to command. It was also the closest fortification, on either side, to the neutral zone, meaning that in terms of defense and offense, Konoha could act and react the quickest. Unfortunately, even after the war, Kumo was still the largest of the hidden villages and still held the numbers advantage.

The platoon picks up speed and as they make it over this last hill Castle East slowly comes into view. Quinn was amazed by the size of it, it was in the afternoon and the sun was high in the sky and so she got a good look at the dark grey and black castle that dominated the landscape. It was the lone land mark of the area, behind her was the thick forests of the land of fire, ahead of her a great plains, with mountains and trees far off in the distance.

The castle was currently surrounded by various soldiers and samurai from the land of Lightning, Quinn had informed Shikaku of their presence, but in a ninja fight they were for the most part irrelevant, but the numbers still made Quinn nervous. Their report said that war hadn't started yet, but in Quinn's opinion it had already begun and the castle was under siege. No real fighting had occurred yet it seemed, but if they weren't at war yet, they were certainly doing a good imitation of it.

She and her team pull into a tight formation as other teams got into position around them, her team following behind her father's team as the rest of the platoon created a barrier for them. It was a simple matter to duck and weave between and through the enemy soldiers, and the few enemy ninja who were in a position to rush them were quickly repelled, though Quinn was quick to note not killed, as their forces made it to the castle. Thanks to Quinn's information they were able to quickly and efficiently punch through the weakest part of the enemy line.

The gate wasn't lowered, instead, they molded chakra to their feet and leapt onto and ran up the wall. She could sense the fear and surprise of the castle's inhabitants spike for a moment, thinking they were finally being attacked, but that is quickly replaced by relief when the defenders realize that they're friendly. In a matter of moments they're within the castle walls and making their way towards the main tower.

Once on the other side of the walls the castle lost some of its grandeur. Everything seemed old and run down and was also currently abandoned. Before the last war it was probably a very busy castle town full of life, but now it was just a shell of its former self. The main tower rose high above everything and was where the strongest concentration of shinobi were, though the wall was being manned and patrolled by various ninja in addition to the soldiers and samurai stationed here.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Hizashi says to her. "We think of the leaf village as all there is to Konoha, but Konoha is more than one single village, it's a concept, an idea that permeates through the Land of Fire. We are the village hidden in the leaves, surrounded by forest. Konoha is more than just our village, it's everywhere that those who are dedicated to the will of fire find themselves. Even here, on the outskirts of hell its self, you can find the branches of Konoha extend and protect those who seek shelter under it."

"What Hizashi means is, pretty badass castle, isn't it?" Hana laughs.

Hizashi chuckles, "Isn't that what I said?"

Badass isn't the word Quinn would use, sad, more likely. It was certainly an impressive building but it was all so lifeless up close that it just made Quinn feel sad. Still she gives nod of her head, because once upon a time, badass, was probably a really apt description.

"I hate to stall even longer, but our best bet of getting out of here and searching for our target is under the cover of darkness. We'll stick around her until the early morning, three or four and then head out. The watch that the enemy have set will be at their most tired, if we're careful slipping past them shouldn't be an issue." Hizashi says quietly as they continue to follow the platoon towards the main castle.

"We should find out if there are any secret tunnels leading out, since we're trying to avoid the enemy something like that would be really convenient, and since this is an old castle, very likely." Yugao says.

"Agreed. Let's settle in, learn what we can about the situation here, and then rest. Everyone needs to be at their best when we leave." Hizashi says.

Quinn glances ahead of her at her father, "Hizashi, if it's okay with you, I would like to make myself useful to Lord Nara and my father while I'm still here."

"Of course, they'll probably request your presence anyway, but make sure you don't strain yourself. Helping them is fine, but the situation here isn't our mission. Finding Nami Yamata is, make sure you're in a condition to do so."

"I will." Quinn says with a nod of her head.

As they continue to make their way towards the tower Quinn senses and then sees a couple of samurai as well as a female chūnin with black hair and blue eyes, about fifteen or sixteen years old, making their way from the tower towards them.

"Lord Nara, Lord Yamanaka, Lord Akimichi." The chūnin greets them with a bow. "We're here to escort you, you don't know how glad we are you're here, we weren't sure who or what to expect when Ebira was sent or even if he got through. I'm Yuko Nakano, aid and sister to Takeko Nakano, the jōnin commander of East Castle, she will be glad to see you, as you can see the situation out there has grown dire."

"Lead the way." Shikaku says, "We have information that should prove useful."

Shikaku then turns to face Hizashi's team, "Hizashi, if you and your team would accompany us, we can find out what we can on where you should begin your search."

"Of course Lord Nara." Hizashi agrees.

 **s**

 **xXx- -xXx**

 **s**

 **Author's Note: So things are getting a little more intense, and the anonymity that was helping to protect Quinn/Rin is starting to disappear. Making a name for yourself in the shinobi world is a double-edged sword. For example, nobody wants to fight Jiraiya of the Sannin, except those people who want to make a name for themselves killing Jiraiya. A reputation can be a great shield until it isn't, and as Quinn/Rin's legend grows, others in the world will become more aware of her for good and ill.**


	29. Chapter 28

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto. As always, please forgive any spelling or grammar errors.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 28-xXx**

 **s**

The tower was a bit maze like as she and her team and her father's team were lead through it by Yuko Nakano. It would be really easy for someone who didn't know the place to get lost, which Quinn assumed was the whole point. Their guide, however, seemed to know every twist and turn in the tower and in no time at all leads them into a large room.

Waiting inside, surrounding a large table covered in maps, are a couple of high ranking samurai in full O-Yoroi armor as well as four jōnin. One of whom was a woman about her mother's age, a large Naginata strapped to her back and in red shinobi armor. She had messy black hair pulled back into a loose pony tail and a pretty face that was marred by two large scars, one running from the top of her forehead down through her left eye to her chin and the other one crossing it, going from her left cheek, under her eye, across her nose and under her right eye, forming a scarred and slightly grotesque cross on the left side of her face.

"Lord Nara, I wasn't expecting you," the woman speaks up, her voice was strong and carried through the room, and was a little deeper than you would expect. "Not that I'm complaining." She says with a confident smirk.

"Takeko, it's good to see you again." Shikaku says. "We got word you could use a little help."

"I won't turn it down, so far there has only been a couple of skirmishes, nothing too big, so that's good news. Unfortunately we still have no word on Ms. Yamata."

"That's where my team comes in, if you can get us a last known location, and possibly something that holds her scent, my team and I can handle the rest." Hizashi says.

Takeko nods her head, "I'll see what we can find, as for her last known location, around here." She says pointing to the map.

"That will have to do." Hizashi says, "If you will please excuse us Lord Nara, I believe my team and I should prepare."

Shikaku nods his head, "I may wish to speak with you later, please don't leave without informing me."

"Of course." Hizashi then bows to the rest of the room.

"I'll see if I can help you track down something that belonged to Ms. Yamata." Yuko says, moving to leave with them.

"It would be greatly appreciated."

"Um… Hizashi…" Quinn trails off uncertainly.

Hizashi gives her a smile and nods his head, granting her permission, before him and Hana leave with Yuko. Yugao deciding to stick by her student's side for now.

"Lord Nara, with your permission too, I'd like to stick around and make myself useful to you." Quinn says.

"If you're sure you're up for it then yes, please." Shikaku says, glad to have Rin at his disposal for the time being.

"Don't put yourself out too much. You do have your own mission to attend to." Her father says.

"Don't worry, I'll keep her honest." Yugao says with a grin.

"I'm sorry, but who are you?" Takeko asks.

"Genin Rin Yamanaka."

"Yamanaka?" Takeko asks, looking at Inoichi.

"My youngest daughter."

"And a real asset that we should utilize while we have her." Shikaku says. "And of course her sensei, Yugao Uzuki."

"I know who Yugao is, how are you kid?"

"I'm well sensei, you?"

"Sensei?" Quinn asks.

"Takeko was my first sensei, she did for me what I'm doing for you, got me ready for the chūnin exams."

"No offense intended generals, but can introductions and reunions be put on hold, we do have a war council to plan." One of the Samurai says.

Shikaku nods his head, "You are correct, we do have some planning to do, our primary goal here is to prevent a war." Shikaku then pulls out a scroll sealed with the Hokage's signet. "By order of the Hokage I am now taking command of East Castle and our forces here. Our main goal is to preserve the peace if at all possible, but prepare for war it is not."

 _"Sensei, general?"_ Quinn signs at Yugao.

 _"Jonin are given the honorary title of colonel, while chūnin hold the honorary title of lieutenant. This is to help avoid confusion and dissension when shinobi forces work with non-shinobi personnel. Your father and uncles, however, are clan heads as well as jōnin, so they are granted the honorary title of general instead."_ Yugao signs back.

 _"I see, what about genin?"_

 _"Corporal, usually."_

"The first thing we need to address is what happened during the retrieval process of Nami Yamata." Chouza says, "I think if we can work from there, it will help us get a better understanding of where we stand."

"Agreed." Shikaku says, turning to Takeko.

The older woman sighs, "Honestly, just rotten luck on our part. The boarder is pretty much on lock down on both sides, however some merchant travel is allowed, though papers are hard to come by and even harder to forge. One such person who works for us however, is the servant in the household of the lord of the Land of Groves. The three lords of the annexed lands and their households are responsible for the largest portion of travel between the borders, and is also probably how they're handling their spy network as well. Though proving it without starting an incident like this one is difficult. This servant acts as a go between for Nami and a madam in a nearby town, the madam is in our pocket and relays the information to us in exchange for various immunities, protection, and other benefits. It's a system that has worked. When we got word that Yamata was requesting an extract, we acted quickly and sent two extraction teams along previously planned routes known only to myself, Nami Yamata, and the team leaders."

"Are we sure that there was no traitors among them or that the information of the route wasn't compromised in some way?" Inoichi asks.

"No sir." One of the jōnin answers. "I was one of the team leads who had knowledge of those routes and I can assure you there was no compromise from our end. I'm… I'm also one of only two people in those teams to survive."

"I'm sorry for your loss." Inoichi says, "I'll want a debriefing with you and the other survivor at a later time."

"Yes sir."

"I can assure you that there was no compromise as well, at least not on our end." Takeko says, "As I said, it was just bad luck. We've done a pretty good job of memorizing the enemies border patrol routes, we know when to move and when to stay put when we need to cross the border. Unfortunately, there were Kumo shinobi nearby the extraction point, we're not sure why but we speculate that it was training exercises. They stumbled upon our forces and unfortunately, the encounter resulted in only two survivors from the extraction teams and Nami Yamata was forced to flee deeper into Lightning territory to avoid capture. Unfortunately things happened so quickly that we barely had time to shore up our defenses, let alone go search for her, worse still, we later learned that among the enemy encountered, Yugito Nii was among them."

"So she's the jinchūriki huh?" Shikaku says, at least now he knew which one he was dealing with.

"You don't sound surprised sir, a jinchūriki does complicate things." Another jōnin says.

"I was made aware of their presence before we arrived, I just wasn't sure if it was Yugito Nii or the Raikage's brother, Killer B., Rin?"

"Yes sir?"

"If you would?" He asks, motioning to the maps.

Quinn nods her head and walks up to the map, focusing on it she releasing the hold she kept on her gift, allowing herself to be bombarded by everything. From the sheer numbers, to their individual strengths and emotions. She allows her senses to carpet the area, gaging the strength and the location of the enemy forces, she then focuses herself and does her best to translate the information she was getting down onto the map and into something her uncles and father could use.

It takes her a few moments, sifting through moving and hiding shinobi, many of whom were trying to suppress and hide their chakra signatures, it was much harder than just noticing everyone in her nice, semi-peaceful village. Still at this range it really doesn't take her long to pick up everyone, especially the stronger shinobi among them. A few of them really stood out, and of course there was the jinchūriki overwhelming her senses. As similar as it was to Naruto, it was also quite different in some ways. It was always noticeable with Naruto and the monster he contained, but this jinchūriki was much more… potent, was the only word she could think to describe it. Like the monster was closer to the surface.

Quinn reaches over and grabs a stray pin and she pokes it into the map, "This is where the jinchūriki is currently located, as well as the highest concentration of possible jōnin shinobi. The rest of the forces are spread out here, here, and here in the greatest concentrations, though we do have shinobi moving between these areas. This isn't counting the various other soldiers and samurai out there as well." Quinn finishes, placing a final pin.

"Lord Nara?" Takeko asks.

"Yes?"

"Assuming her information is correct, we also need to consider something else as well."

"How quickly they assembled their forces." Chouza answers instead. "They've already mobilized an army, they've been waiting for a moment like this."

"Which means, they want a war." Shikaku finishes.

"For international support they'll at least pretend to negotiate. Make us out to be the main aggressors, Iwa is just looking for an excuse to attack and if this does become a war we'll probably be forced to fight it on two fronts." Inoichi says.

"Possibly three." Shikaku says. "Suna's a wild card right now. They may help us, stay neutral, or…"

"So, how do we stop this from happening?" Takeko asks.

Shikaku turns to look at Yugao, "Yugao, you and your team cannot fail. Rescue Nami Yamata, or kill her and dispose of the body, there can be no evidence that she was ever in Lightning. She's the spark that Kumo needs to justify their war. If they lose her, they'll likely back down."

"Yes sir."

"And if they don't?" Quinn asks.

"Well, that's what we're here to determine." Shikaku answers, "I can't negotiate until I know what they want, but I can plan a defense."

"We should probably head out sooner rather than later sir." Yugao says.

"You are correct, meet up with Hizashi immediately and head out as soon as possible. I was thinking of asking Hizashi to stick around but recovering Yamata is the most important thing right now." Shikaku says.

"Takeko?" Inoichi asks.

"Yes Lord Yamanaka?"

"Are there any tunnels that they can use to sneak past the enemy, otherwise, it'll be up to us to make a distraction." Here Inoichi looks to Shikaku, "I think we want to avoid that if at all possible."

"Agreed." Shikaku says, though he was already working on a push their forces could do to provide an opening for the rescue team.

"Yeah, there is a tunnel it leads out of the castle, pretty well hidden." Takeko says, "Yuko knows where it is, she can lead them there."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Hizashi." Yugao calls out to him as she and Quinn make their way over to their team.

"Yes?"

"We've been ordered to head out immediately, it looks like you will be coming with us." Yugao says.

"Hmm, very well. Your timing couldn't be better anyway, we just finished going over the maps and Yuko was able to get us an old scarf of Yamata's."

"The scent's pretty weak." Hana says, "However, my guys are well trained, if we can get on her trail they'll be able to pick up her scent."

"Yuko?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Takeko said that you would be able to take us to one of the tunnels that leads out of the castle."

"Yes ma'am, I was just telling Hizashi about them."

"Then let's not waste any more time, is everyone ready?" Hizashi asks, looking around before his eyes land on Quinn.

Quinn gives a nod of her head, time to get started. They just had to be quiets, smart and fast. They could do this, they had to do this, she was not going to allow her father to fight in another war, not if she could prevent it.

"Then let's move out. Yuko, if you would please lead the way."

"Yes sir."

As they follow Yuko down deeper into the keep, San makes his way next to her and rubs his head under her hand. She doesn't say anything, but she does scratch behind his ear. Quinn looks over at over at Hana who gives her a grin and a thumbs up.

This was it, she was really going on her first mission, and like so many other things in this world of hers, failure was not an option. Not one she could live with anyway. She had always been terrified that her actions and failures would somehow hurt Ino or Naruto and Sakura, but now she was in a position that she had never really considered before. If she failed here, her father was in grave danger. Uncle Shikaku would have to retreat and her father would be left here to hold the line.

No, she wouldn't fail, she was Quinn Fabray… she was Rin Yamanaka, failure wasn't an option. She would rescue her mother's teammate, she would avert a war and she and her father would go home safely. That was it, she had to believe in that outcome. The other wasn't acceptable.

They head keep heading down finally finding themselves in what was obviously the castle's dungeon. It actually looked like what Quinn would expect a dungeon to look like, cold, damp, dark and dirty. It was currently empty and Yuko leads them down to end of the cell block to the last cell. She then reaches up and presses against one of the stone blocks in the wall, there's a shifting rumbling sound of heavy stones rubbing against each other for a moment, and then the part of the wall swings out, wide enough for one person to squeeze through.

"Just follow the path, it'll go for a couple of miles, but it exits out in Lightning territory behind the enemy lines. From there, I guess you'll be on your own." Yuko says, "If you need to come back through this way, the door easily opens from that side, just apply a little pressure."

"Thank you, we should be okay from here." Hizashi says.

"Good luck." And with that, Yuko turns and leaves.

"Well Hana, you thought you should be the one to go first." Hizashi says with a teasing grin, none of them were eager to enter the cramped space.

Hana rolls her eyes, but does move towards the opening, one of her dogs moving in front of her the other following after.

"I'll go next." Yugao says, following behind Hana.

"I guess that means I'm next." Quinn says, not eager to go into the creepy old dark tunnel.

Hizashi stops her for a second before she goes in, "Don't worry, everything is going to be fine. Just stay close to the rest of us, we can do this."

Quinn doesn't say anything, but she does nod her head, grateful for the attempt at least to make her feel better. But in all honesty Quinn knew she wouldn't be okay until all of this was over and everyone was safe.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

The tunnel seemed to go on forever, twisting and turning, the only light provided by a small flame that Quinn was keeping active. _"You are the fire jutsu expert._ " Yugao had said with a grin. Quinn had rolled her eyes at that but complied, not only was it an E-Rank jutsu, but a fire one at that and so it used up almost no chakra.

Even for a squad of fully trained ninja they moved quietly, the dusty stone surrounding them seemed to absorb even the smallest of sounds, negating any echoes and muffling their movement. Whoever had built this had obviously known what they were doing and it had been built to last. Quinn however couldn't wait to get out of there and judging by the emotions of the people surrounding her she wasn't the only one.

Quinn wasn't claustrophobic but this place seemed to just close in around on them. Her thoughts drifted to her father, she couldn't stop worrying about him. She wanted him home, safe with her mother and her sister… except, her sister wasn't home safe right now either. She was out on her first C-Rank mission and so were Naruto and Sakura.

Ino had told her that she needed to start having more faith in them, and Quinn really wanted to but, here she was on her first mission, with a war about to start, sneaking behind enemy territory to try and rescue someone who may already be dead. If this is what her most important people had to look forward to then all the faith in the world wouldn't matter and nothing she did to protect them would matter. And yet here she was, because she had been told this was the best way she could protect them and yet it was already starting to feel pretty hopeless.

No, thinking like that wouldn't help, being distracted wouldn't help. She needed to focus, she needed to have faith in her father and her sister and her friends. It wasn't pointless, what she was doing, what she was sacrificing, it had to matter. And her father, Ino, her friends, they were all so strong. They would be okay, she had to believe that, and she needed to be okay for them too.

"We're nearing the exit." Hana says, "The scent in the air is starting to freshen."

"About time, how much further?" Yugao asks.

"Ten minutes, give or take." Hana says.

"Sensei."

Yugao looks back at her, "Yeah kid, what's up?"

"There's a shinobi team approaching the area." Quinn says, her brow furrowing as she gets a better lock on them.

"Alright, Rin put out the flame. Hana, you'll have to lead us out the rest of the way in the dark. Everyone move silently and be ready for combat. Surprise is our best weapon at this point." Hizashi says.

"Rin, how strong are they, can you tell from here?" Yugao asks.

Quinn nods her head, she really doesn't want to answer because this wasn't going to end well, she could feel it. Every single fiber of her old world's morality was screaming at her to turn around and just walk away. Forget all of this, forget being a ninja, forget the fighting and violence and just walk away. However when Quinn answers her voice is steady and calm and void of any emotion, belying the inner turmoil that she was feeling. "Yes."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn was praying harder than she ever had in her entire existence, even the fear and despair that she felt when she was in the middle of that car wreck dying paled in comparison to the fear she felt now. She watches as Yugao sensei slowly draws her katana and she can sense Hizashi channel chakra into his eyes and hands while Hana does the same to her hands as well, causing her nails to harden and turn claw-like. And almost automatically, as if her body were reacting of its own volition, independent of what her mind and heart wanted she drew her own katana as well.

If they would just leave, if they would just move on this could be avoided, but they weren't. They had barely exited the tunnel, which was cleverly hidden behind some brush when a team of Kumo ninja entered the clearing. They hadn't noticed them at all yet and why should they have, they were only genin.

Like Naruto, like Sakura, like… like Ino. There was jōnin sensei with them as well but he had failed to notice the danger that surrounded him and his team. _The danger_ , she scoffs internally, as if she wasn't a part of that. Each of her teammates and her sensei were tense, but resolved, they couldn't wait and there was no surefire way to sneak past them. They were hidden now, but any movement other than retreating back into the tunnel would get them noticed.

Time was not on their side, it had been three, nearly four days since the failed extraction of Nami Yamata, who was wounded and behind enemy lines. Her recovery was quite possibly the only thing that could prevent a war with Kumo from igniting. Her father's life, countless lives depended on her team's success. They had to move, and they had to move now and so Hizashi made the call, if the Kumo team didn't move out, and soon, her team would strike.

"Man when I heard we were going to be taking a C-Rank mission near the border I thought it was going to be much more interesting than this!" One of the genin, a boy with spikey green hair wines.

"What we're doing is important." Another boy, this one wearing a bandana over his head says.

"Yon is correct. By mapping out these supply lines now, if war does start our side will have an advantage that could save a lot of lives. It's important that we do a good job and that we take this seriously." The sensei says.

"I know that…" The first boy grumbles, "I just thought… I mean come on, don't you guys want to see some action and show those leaf jerks that they can't push us around!"

"We'd just get in the way." The girl speaks ups, she had long blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail that reminded Quinn painfully of Ino.

"Would not…" the first boys grumbles quietly, though he doesn't sound like he believes what he's saying.

"Besides, with my big sis there it won't be much of fight." The girl says, her voice equal parts proud and smug.

"She is pretty cool isn't she?" The boy in the bandana agrees.

"Yep!" The girl chirps happily.

"Stay on task team." The sensei says, slightly exasperated, but he doesn't look frustrated, more indulgent than anything, like he's said that sentence a thousand times.

"Yes sensei." The boy in the bandana and the girl chorus together, before pulling out maps and beginning to mark them.

The green haired boy however says, "But sensei, we've been at this all day!"

The sensei sighs before looking at each of his genin who are gazing back at him hopefully. "Alright, finish mapping out this area and we'll set up camp here tonight." He says, smiling when that gets a cheer from all three of them.

Quinn however feels her heart break at those words. She glances at each of her teammates and she can sense the regret coming from each of them, but that doesn't stop them from getting ready to strike. She catches her sensei's eye and Yugao signs at her _"Remember your training, make it quick."_

Quinn forces herself not to swallow nervously, any sound before the attack, even something as quiet and innocuous as that could give them away. She lightly adjusts the grip she has on her blade, readying it for a slashing motion. Please God, or whoever exists out there, I know you're real, I wouldn't be here if you weren't, please, don't let this happen, don't make me do this.

But it was too late, Hizashi is the first to move, it's a fraction of a second before the rest of them, but it signals her team to go. Quinn's would like to say that her body just reacted, that this was all mindless muscle memory and training on her part, but it wasn't. She was hyper aware of everything she was doing. It wasn't a blur, time didn't seem to disappear in a blink, in fact it seemed to slow down to her. Giving her ample time to memorize the scene and how it played out. There would be no forgetting or suppressing this, she knew she would remember this with crystal clarity for the rest of her life.

Hizashi strikes first, his open palm slamming into the sensei's back right where his heart was, a small gasp like the wind getting knocked out of him escapes from the man's lips, his eyes wide with shock and pain as he collapses to his knees, heart stopped, dead.

Yugao strikes next, almost simultaneously with Hizashi, her blade piercing the spikey green haired boy's chest, going through his heart. Killing him before he could even become aware of what was happening.

Hana was next, she rushes forward the two of the three brother's close behind her. The boy in the bandana barely gets out a confused "Huh?" Before Hana has his head in her hands and she snaps his neck.

Then there was her, she went last, hesitating for half a second behind the others, she rushes towards the blonde haired girl. The girls blue eyes are just starting to widen with horror as her mind catches up with the speed in which she sees her team die, she turns just in time to see Quinn reach her. Before she can make a sound Quinn brings her blade forward and around in a powerful and fast sweep. The weeks of training with Yugao-sensei coming to bear.


	30. Chapter 29

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or Naruto. So first of all I have two apologies to make, the first one is due to how long it's been since I've updated. I've basically posted all of my chapter that have been pre-written for this story and so now I'm stuck posting whenever I finish a chapter rather than the weekly update that I have been doing. I'll continue to try and write ahead, however, it might not happen and so there will more likely than not be longer waits between chapters now. I am going on vacation soon though, so I'm hoping to get some more writing done at that time.**

 **My second apology is for what may be an inaccurate portrayal of Lightning Village. I've done a little bit of research on them, but I'm not too sure about the finer details and am quite unfamiliar with most of the characters and their personalities. I'll do my best but if they appear out of character from what you might be familiar with, I apologize. Anyway, with that all said, I hope you all enjoy this new chapter.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 29-xXx**

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"Still no response from them?" Chouza asks, as he moves to stand by his teammates, the three of them overlooking the surrounding area from the top of the tower.

"No." Inoichi says distractedly, his eyes gazing off into the distance and his brow slightly furrowed. It had been two days since Hizashi Hyūga's team had left to find Nami Yamata, and Inoichi had been tense and irritable ever since.

"Luckily for us they don't seem any more likely to attack today than they were yesterday." Shikaku clarifies. Chouza had missed a lot of the planning as he had taken charge of the troops along the wall and had been helping them prepare and organize for the likely upcoming battle.

"Then they must be waiting for something. If they were going to attack they missed the window of opportunity that assured them victory. Now we are too entrenched, any attack on their part will lead to huge losses." Chouza says.

"I don't know what they're planning, none of their actions make sense. Why build up your forces like this then wait to attack? And if they aren't going to attack why do they not negotiate? There is more at play here than meets the eye." Shikaku mutters quietly, almost thinking out loud more than talking to them.

"Still, in some ways, no news is good news." Chouza says with what he hopes is a comforting smile to Inoichi.

Shikaku nods his head in agreement. "Chouza is correct, we would have heard something by now if..." Shikaku trails off at the tired and defeated look that Inoichi gives him.

"If what, if they had captured or killed my daughter? I can't sense her, she's either too far or too concealed, or dead, and I have no way of knowing. I know the kind of life my children have chosen, it's the life I have chosen, but there has been no preparation for Rin, she has been thrust right into the middle of all of this…"

"We know better than most just how special your daughter is. You know me, I'm realistic about shinobi life, uncertainty, pain, and death are just a part of it that we have to accept. And yes, Rin is in grave danger right now, but," Shikaku places a hand on his best friend's shoulder and looks him straight in the eyes, "I have faith that she will succeed and that she will return to you safe and unharmed. I wouldn't say it if I didn't believe it."

"Shikaku is correct, Rin is a prodigy, not only that but she has worked hard and she has both Hizashi Hyūga and Yugao Uzuki to watch out for her. If we want to help her the best thing we can do is keep their forces focused on us and let her and her team do their job."

Inoichi nods his head with a sigh, "I know you are correct, and I know that the best thing I can do for her right now is to make sure that she has a place to come back to, but… It goes against every instinct I have as a father to not rush out there right now and find her. I should never have allowed her to go on this mission." Inoichi growls that last sentence, the anguish obvious to hear.

"It was the Hokage's orders. You couldn't have stopped this." Shikaku says.

"Which begs the question, what is his interest in her really?" Chouza asks. He held great respect for the third but his interest in Rin and his eagerness to push her along this path made him nervous. "I've never known the Third to be this reckless with one of his shinobi."

"Could it be due to her origins?" Shikaku muses.

"I don't see how. He knows less about it than we do and we still know nothing." Inoichi says with a scowl, he and the others had spent the last twelve years trying to figure out how Rin had come to them and none of them had had any luck in figuring out her origins. Rin's birth was as much a mystery today as it was all those years ago when that foreign chakra had surged through Megumi and given them Rin in the first place.

"He knows less as far as we know. He may have discovered something and decided not to share it." Shikaku corrects them, one underestimated Hiruzen Sarutobi at their own peril.

"Whatever his reasons I don't like it, as a father or a shinobi," Inoichi says. "It's too much too early, this is turning into Itachi all over again."

"You don't think Rin would ever do something like that do you?" Chouza says, shocked at the very idea. Though upon thinking about it he could see the parallels in their early careers quite easily.

Inoichi shakes his head, "No, no I'm not worried about Rin going rogue, what I meant was Itachi was thrust into this life too quickly as well and it broke him. I remember Itachi, he was a very gentle soul, but shinobi life and especially his time in ANBU tore at him and destroyed him. Rin is much the same way, she is so softhearted, so…" Inoichi pauses and sighs, before looking back out over the surrounding lands as if hoping to catch a glimpse of his daughter.

"It's ironic that so often the people most skilled in the shinobi arts are those who are least fit to handle its burdens. If Rin is pushed over the edge, if this proves too much for her, when she breaks she won't lash out like Itachi did. I know my daughter, it will be much more internal… and in its own way, just as devastating."

"Have faith my friend. If she's anything like her old man and if she has even a fraction of the skill that we think, I know Rin is going to make it out of this just fine." Chouza says.

Inoichi doesn't say anything in response, just nodding his head in gratitude at Chouza's efforts to ease his worry. But that just wasn't possible right now, the horrible sinking sensation in his stomach, the iron band that was wrapped around his heart, they would only dissipate when Rin was once again safely by his side.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Yugito Nii was anxious. They had been here for two days now, their forces surrounding East Castle, but not doing anything. It was pointless to attack at this point, with the reinforcements that had arrived and broken through their line, and with such ease, any attack they made would be a blood bath. They didn't even know how many Leaf shinobi had arrived it had happened all so fast. But Jonin Eiji was not responding to their signals for negotiation either. He had them just… waiting.

What was going through that man's head right now was beyond her. Was he waiting for the recovery of the spy? But if that was the case then why was he not sending more of their forces to search for her? He had certainly called forth enough of their forces from the surrounding area. It was currently the largest gathering of Kumo shinobi outside of the Hidden Cloud Village in the past decade.

Word had been sent to the Raikage about this incident of course, but no word had currently been sent back, and until they heard otherwise Jonin Eiji was the ranking shinobi of the area and thus in command. Though she couldn't figure out how he had managed it, especially considering the actions of his brother and the incident with the peace negotiations with the Leaf village after the last war. How had Eiji managed to attain his position?

Yugito had no problem fighting for her country and her village, and she would be the first to say that those Leaf pricks needed to be knocked down a peg or two, but something about this didn't set right with her. And worst of all, her little sister, a new genin not even a year into her a career was here at the front with them. Luckily she was in relatively little danger, her team was currently out mapping future supply routes should they become necessary, but still…

Someone as young and sweet as her sister had no business fighting in any kind of war, at least not yet. She had so much potential, but she needed the time to grow into it. And Yugito did feel a little bit of guilt as well, she was a Jinchūriki, and while she loved her job and career and she loved being a Kunoichi, she also had very little say in the matter. Her little sister could have become anything that she wanted, but Yoko looked up to her, she knew for a fact that she was the reason that her little sister had become a kunoichi in the first place.

She wanted to be just like her big sister. It was both flattering and humbling at the same time to have someone like Yoko look up to her. Really, she just wanted her little sister safe, something that was near impossible as a ninja. But she was also so very proud of her, she worked hard and had graduated as the top kunoichi of her class. Her little sis was well on her way to making a real name for herself.

She walks about the camp ignoring the looks she receives, used to the fear and the awe. Those most important to her knew who she was, what she was, and loved her anyway. Yoko, Bee, Samui, even Lord Raikage. Even he was very kind to her when he didn't need to be. After all, she wasn't the only jinchūriki in their village and he had the support of B, the eight tails, and yet he still treated her well, almost like family. She was lucky, she knew the fate of her kind was rarely pleasant.

Yugito is brought out of her musings when she hears a voice call out to her. "Lady Nii."

Yugito turns to face the messenger, a chūnin by the looks of him. "Yes?"

"Lady Nii, Lord Eiji requests your presence immediately."

"Oh, what does he want?"

The chūnin gulps nervously, obviously uncomfortable in her presence. "I do not know my lady, he didn't say. Only that he wished to speak with you immediately."

Yugito rolls her eyes, "Very well."

As Yugito heads towards the command tent, once again ignoring the looks and stares that she receives from her fellow Cloud Shinobi. The hypocrites, they feared her presence now, but once the fighting started they'd be glad she was here.

Yugito ducks into the command tent. "You wished to see me sir?" Yugito says, keeping her voice even.

Eiji as well as the other ranking jōnin turn to face her. "Yugito, please come in." Eiji says, motioning for her to take a spot near him, "We were just discussing what we know so far."

Eiji was a tall man, standing a little over six feet tall, but he was also quite thin. He had a bandage wrapped around his head that also covered his left eye. His hair was long and black, his skin was pale, and he sported a thin Fu Manchu mustache along with a neatly trimmed and pointed beard.

"Yeah, which is a whole lot of nothing." Growls an older man with a thick, scruffy beard, and darker skin. He only stood about five feet tall, but he was thick and well built.

"Gi-sensei." Yugito says with a polite nod of her head.

"How ya doing girl?"

"I am well." In her training to control the beast within her, Gi-sensei, a third cousin of the Raikage, had been one of her teachers. The training had been brutal, but it had turned her in to the powerful weapon that she was and so she had to be grateful.

"Any word yet on the spy?" Yugito asks, turning her attention to Eiji.

"No, no word yet." Another jōnin answers instead. "Though we could send more of our forces to look for her."

"No." Eiji responds. "I want our forces concentrated here, where the greatest threat is."

"Sir, there have been reports of possible Leaf shinobi in the area, searching as well." Another jōnin chimes in.

"Rumors, nothing more."

"You can't possibly believe that the Leaf Village hasn't sent people out to look for the spy?" The same jōnin gasps, almost scandalized by Eiji's apparent indifference.

"Of course they've sent out teams, but with their current limited forces, not enough to worry about."

"And the more we stall here the more likely it is that more Konoha forces will arrive." Gi growls, "We should either attack now and get this over with or answer their calls for negotiation, all this waiting around is foolish."

"I want them on edge, I plan to meet with them tomorrow. Yugito, I want you to join."

"Me sir?"

"Yes, I want to start off from a position of strength. Your presence there will ensure that."

Yugito nods her head, "Of course sir." She was used to being paraded around like a weapon and she couldn't argue with the logic of it. She was a jinchūriki, a living weapon. Since she was here, they may as well utilize her.

Plus they were going up against not only Takeko Nakano, a formidable woman who had commanded East Castle for the past six years, and had been a huge thorn in their side since the first day she took command, but also the infamous Ino-Shika-Chou Trio. Legendary strategists and considered one of the most powerful shinobi teams in the world to this day. It truly spoke to the potential devastation that a jinchūriki could wreak that her presence was considered an equalizer in this whole scenario.

"Good, that's settled then." Eiji says, "Now, let us discuss our strategy for tomorrow. With Shikaku Nara there it is best that we go in prepared."

Yugito observed quietly as the jōnin around her discussed strategy, all of them seemed agitated and frustrated, bringing up time and time again wasted opportunity and how the Leaf ninja had been given too much of an opportunity to entrench themselves. Any battle on their part, while likely ending in a victory for their side, was going to be extremely costly. Eiji however seemed to take it in stride, mentioning time and again that they needn't worry about that.

It was an exhausting two hours later before Eiji released them. As the five other jōnin left the command tent, Eiji calls for her. "Yugito, stay for a moment."

"Yes sir?" Yugito answers, turning to face him and fighting the urge to roll her eyes in frustration. She wanted nothing more than to get out of here and see if her sister's team had reported in yet. They were due back later tonight or early tomorrow and Yugito was eager for news.

"I know that our forces are confused and annoyed with how I have handled things so far. The jōnin commanders have made their frustrations and the frustrations of our forces abundantly clear, however, I am curious on your take on the matter?"

Yugito hesitates for a moment, unsure of how to proceed before saying, "It is not my place to question your decisions, Lord Eiji."

Eiji chuckles to himself, "A very diplomatic answer, but not what I wanted to hear. Please, tell me truthfully, what do you think of our current situation?"

Yugito sighs before fixing Eiji with a hard look, "Very well, it was a colossal mistake on your part to not press the advantage while we had it. You gathered our forces remarkably fast, faster than I thought was even possible, and we had taken out most of the leaf retrieval team and surrounded their main fortification before they had time to even catch their breath. The loss of the spy hurt our side, but it wasn't devastating and if we can find her it will be of no consequence. We should have pressed our advantage, taken East Castle before they could send out runners and martial their defenses. Taking prisoners where possible, we could have secured the largest fortification in the area for ourselves and once the Leaf reinforcements arrived, we could have dealt with them from a position of power, rather on this even playing field you've allowed them."

Here Yugito's hard look morphs into a full glare, "But you are aware of all of this, you know that you've weakened our position here and that every day we stall it gives the Leaf Village a chance to martial and prepare their forces. So, the only reason I can think of that you would allow the situation here to unfold the way it has is that you are aware of something the rest of us aren't."

Eiji nods his head as if pleased. "Very good Yugito, very good in deed. The Raikage is right about you, you are more clever than most."

"Sir?"

"What I am about to share with you does not leave this tent, understood?"

Yugito nods her head. "Yes sir."

"We have a spy on the inside of the castle. And they have been feeding us information about Konoha's forces in the area for months. It was through them that we learned of the existence of the spy in the first place and so since then, on the orders of the Raikage I have been slowly martialing our forces in the area and preparing for the moment when we would strike."

"How have I not heard about this?" Yugito asks, her mind racing.

"Because we could not risk this information leaking out, we have no real working knowledge of the coming and goings of the Leaf Village, their security is near impenetrable to our spy networks and if one of them hadn't turned traitor for our side, we would never have known that they managed to sneak one of their shinobi into our village. Just think about it, how difficult it would be for Konoha to pull that off, especially…"

"Especially if they didn't have help from the inside." Yugito finishes.

"Exactly, we couldn't be sure who if anyone hadn't helped the spy sneak into our village. We don't know where we were compromised, nor who we could trust."

"And did Lord Raikage suspect me?" Yugito asks, hurt by the very thought. Her loyalty to the Raikage was unwavering and absolute, he was more than just a leader to her, he was like family. He had to have trusted Bee with this information, so why had he not trusted her?

"Of course he didn't suspect you." Eiji assures her, "But he has kept this information very close the chest. Only myself, and a select few in the villages hierarchy were made aware of the spy's existence at all. But do you honestly think it an accident that you were assigned to do something so menial as border drills or that you were assigned to the very team that engaged the Konoha retrieval teams? It was no coincidence that you were there Yugito."

"But why not tell us what we were looking for once we started the drills? Leaf's presence took us all by surprise, things could have just as easily turned out worse for our side and the spy still escaped. If we had known what we were looking for, if we had been informed of what our real mission in the area was, we could have handled it differently and the spy would not have escaped. I understand the need for secrecy in all of this, but once we were sent out, why not inform myself or one of the jōnin in command of the situation?"

"You just answered your own question. You would have handled it differently, we do enough border drills that an extra one here or there wouldn't seem out of place to the Leaf Village shinobi, but if we sent out a large force of shinobi to the border and they were actively hunting and searching for something then that would have tipped the Leaf Village off that something was amiss."

Eiji lets out a tired sigh, "Honestly, I think this whole scenario with the spy was handled poorly. The simplest thing to do would have been to arrest the spy while she was still in the village, however, in order to draw out the entire ring Lord Raikage allowed the spy to set up her escape. We all have our orders."

"I guess…" Yugito concedes, although it still seemed strange to her that the Raikage wouldn't have informed her of what was happening, especially when the time came for her to apprehend the spy. He always made sure his shinobi had as much intel as possible on any given mission. That he would withhold information from her like this was troubling.

"I can see you are still troubled by all of this, unfortunately, while I can answer any questions you may have on what we did, only Lord Raikage can answer the why. I suggest you take it up with him when he arrives, if you still have concerns."

"The Raikage is coming here?"

"Yes."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

It was all coming to a head, the years of shame, the death and dishonoring of his brother, soon it would all be corrected. After the death of his brother 12 years ago, murdered by that piece of trash Hiashi Hyuga, Eiji had been forced to keep his head down, impotent at the injustice of it all. During the last few months of the war the Leaf Village had somehow completely overwhelmed their forces and beaten their proud village into submission. His brother's attempt to kidnap the Hyuga child had been a last ditch attempt on his part to grab a small victory out of all of the defeat.

While he hated the Leaf Village for killing his brother, he could not fault them for it. His brother had committed a crime against them, they were at war. Leaf's response was the exact same that theirs would have been if their positions had been reversed. What he could not abide, what he absolutely despised was the weak response of the Raikage after the incident.

A was not the man that his father was, nor was he even half the Kage that his father had been. The Third Raikage would never have allowed the murder of his brother, a proud Kumo Jonin commander, to go unanswered. And it was Eiji's firm belief that if it had been the Third who had been in power during the war and not his weak son, the fourth, then Kumo would never have lost the war in the first place.

After the incident with the Hyuga, the Fourth Raikage had all but rolled over for the Leaf Village, and his brother's good and loyal name had been dragged through the mud. And he, Eiji, had been forced to keep his mouth shut and accept this for how it was. Rising through the ranks had been difficult, because of his brother he had been relegated to a small out of the way post along the border. But he had persevered and worked and schemed, and when necessary killed, his way to the top.

He had finally regained his family's honor. He was the highest ranking jōnin along the border region. He was in charge of Lightning's first line of defense against the Leaf Shinobi. Any other person would have been thrilled to reach such a position, especially after the dishonor he and his family had to endure, but it still wasn't enough. His brother's blood cried out in agony to him, demanding justice for his death.

And that's when it happened, one night along the border, a Leaf Shinobi had been captured and brought before him. But to his surprise it wasn't by accident, the ninja in question was looking to defect and in order to prove their sincerity offered him up a piece of information that was too good to pass up. The existence of a Konoha spy living within their village.

And from this information a plan took root and began to grow within his mind. A way to gain justice for his brother and glory for himself. Months of meticulous planning, slowly feeling his way through Kumo forces to see whom he could trust. Reporting just enough information to manipulate those around him, but not so much that he lost his advantage. And now everything was finally falling into place.

His brother would have justice, and he would rise even higher in glory than his brother had. And all of the enemies that he had, both foreign and domestic would pay. Eiji slips quietly into the night and to a secret tunnel that led into East Castle, shown to him by the spy. It was their meeting place, it had been two days since he had spoken to his spy and he was eager for information.

He waits quietly in the darkness and the shadows right outside the tunnel entrance. His spy steps out into the night and looks around, unable to locate him. Eiji loved this feeling, the sense of power and superiority as he remained hidden. To his spy's credit they don't jump when he makes himself known to them, but he can tell by the way their body stiffens that he had startled them.

"Lord Eiji."

"Report."

"Lord Eiji, only a single platoon reinforces the castle, seven teams lead by Shikaku Nara. However, I do have some troubling news. Inoichi Yamanaka has a daughter who is a powerful sensor type."

"I am well aware of the Yamanaka's propensity towards sensor types, why is this news?" A Yamanaka sensor, was kind of redundant thing to say, it was generally just assumed they were. But finding out that only a single platoon had been sent to reinforce East Castle was great news. Konoha had slipped past their ranks so quickly that they hadn't been able to determine how many enemy shinobi had actually arrived and until now they had been in the dark about just how powerful the defenses of the castle were.

His spy seems openly agitated by his response, "Sir, you don't understand, I have never seen nor heard anything like this before. She was able to determine the exact number of shinobi in the area, not only that but their exact locations, and how strong they were as well. It was… astonishing. They knew long before they arrived, about the presence of the Jinchuriki, as well as your troops positioning. How else do you think they were able to break through your line so easily? They knew exactly where your forces were and where your forces were at their weakest."

Eiji hums quietly as he contemplates this new information. "You are certain her ability is this strong, that you do not exaggerate." Secrecy was a shinobi's greatest weapon, if Konoha had a way to negate this advantage then it needed to be rectified. But he had a hard time believing any single shinobi could have such a powerful gift.

"No sir, while I interacted with her very little, I have spoken with the many of the shinobi who travelled here with her. She is just a genin but the Third Hokage apparently chose her specifically for this mission, not only that but apparently the Third Hokage has also been training her personally for years now. The girl is dangerous."

"That is troubling, Konoha cannot be allowed to have such a powerful weapon at their disposal."

"I agree, luckily she is no longer in the castle, she is part of a team being led by Hizashi Hyuga to locate the spy Nami Yamata."

Eiji gives no outward reaction when he hears that name, though internally he is filled with rage. Hizashi Hyuga was the twin brother of the man who had murdered his brother. "How many teams are currently searching for the spy?"

"Just them my lord. The team consists of Hizashi Hyuga, Yugao Uzuki, Hana Inuzuka, and Rin Yamanaka."

It was a bold move on Konoha's part to send only one team to recover their spy, but clever as well considering who was on it. One team could easily sneak around unnoticed as long as they were careful. The Hyuga and Inuzuka clans were both talented, though vastly different trackers, and Yugao Uzuki was a ghost among shinobi, a famed assassin of the Leaf and if the information on the Yamanaka girl was even partially accurate, then sending a single team was all that the Leaf Village needed to. Better one team that could move unnoticed and easily track down their target than sending multiple teams and risk open combat.

"Do you know which way they are heading?"

"They took the north tunnel to avoid the siege and sneak behind your lines. They'll be deep inside your territory at this point."

"They'll be hampered in their movement by our patrols, even with the Byakugan and the Inuzuka's nin-ken, they won't be able to move quickly through our territory, not if they want to avoid our patrols… the recovery of the spy while useful is not necessary for my plans, however if this girl's ability is as potent as you say it is, it will be a problem down the road."

"How do you want to deal with her?"


	31. Chapter 30

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or Naruto. Here is Chapter 30 of our story and I hope you enjoy. Please forgive any spelling and grammar errors, I try to catch them but I know I'm not always successful. I would also like to take a moment and thank each of you who has read, followed, favorited, and/or reviewed this story. I am so humbled by the positive response to such a weird little story. It really is amazing to me, so thank you so much for your continued interest.**

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The wound in her side had stopped its bleeding but that was about the only thing to be said going her way right now. Well that and the fact that she hadn't been captured yet, but she knew it was only a matter of time. She was contemplating killing herself and getting it over with. She couldn't be captured, she knew that much and maybe if she were a more responsible kunoichi she would have already. But the truth of the matter was, Nami Yamata wanted to go home.

She wanted to see Konoha again, she wanted to feel the warm summer breeze and see the great forests that surrounded her home. She wanted to visit her favorite little ramen shop, Ichiraku's, and she wanted to visit the memorial and pay her respects to her fallen teammates and sensei and she wanted to, more than anything else, see how her friend Megumi was.

She and Megumi were the last surviving members of their team, and Megumi was retired and had children now. She hoped her friend was still doing well, she hoped that she was still happy with Inoichi and her two little girls. But she wanted to see it in person, herself, with her own two eyes. She wanted to see that and see for sure that the sacrifices she had made were worth it.

She had volunteered for this mission because it needed to be done, because she and Megumi had lost so many friends in the last war that Nami had to be the one to make sure it didn't happen again. If living among her enemies, observing them, keeping her ear to the ground for rumors, gathering whatever intel she could, if doing that meant that she could help maintain Konoha's edge over her enemies then she was proud to do so. Infiltration had always been a specialty of hers, she had always been able to just walk up to people and put them at ease and get them talking. At home this gift of hers meant she had made a ton of friends, in Kumo it allowed her to talk her way into getting information on them that Konoha would never know otherwise.

Her original cover had been as a simple waitress at one of Kumo's taverns and from that point on she had managed to create a whole new life for herself. She went from waitress, to bartender, to cook, to assistant manager in her time there. And because of her easy going nature and not to brag, but rather pretty features, she had helped draw in many shinobi patrons to her work. She was just the pretty, kind of dumb but sweet, assistant manager of a favorite watering hole. And as such she was essentially invisible to the Kumo shinobi as any kind of threat.

She rarely, almost never, heard what anyone would initially deem as classified information, but she didn't need to. If you were smart, if you paid attention to what was happening in the village, if you could make yourself an interesting and attentive listener, then local gossip could tell you what you needed to know. And as much as secrecy was supposed to be the shinobi's creed, nobody gossiped like a ninja did. And from their gossiping and bragging, and just small talk as they ate, she learned a treasure trove of information and secrets over the years.

She was always careful about when and what she sent out, gathering information was actually the easiest part of her job. Any half competent spy could gather as much information as they wanted, the hard part, and the most dangerous part was smuggling that information out. It was during the passing of information to your side and your informants that most things went wrong for spies.

Any number of things could go wrong, a member of your ring could be compromised, or even have betrayed you. You yourself could be under suspicion and followed. And the scariest part in Nami's opinion, was that once the information was passed on, what happened next was entirely out of your hands. You had to trust other people to do their job and to do it as well as you did yours. Not an easy thing to do, but that mistrust on her end had saved her life.

Two weeks ago one of the people whom she passed her messages along to had begun to act differently, and that was when a spy needed to be the most wary. This person, a merchant who she met up with once a month, was suddenly much calmer during their meetings. Normally the guy was jittery and anxious, glancing around nervously.

He was committing treason, he had every reason to be nervous, but two weeks ago he had arrived to their meeting spot as calm as could be. He was almost relaxed, like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. She didn't act any differently but it sent up a huge red flag for her. It didn't take her long to figure out that he had been compromised and was now informing on her for Kumo, for either a pardon or leniency. The only reason she could surmise that she hadn't been taken into custody right away was that Kumo officials wanted to break the entire ring. They wanted to watch her and see just how deep this all went.

On the plus side for Kumo it was essentially just her and a couple of informants and messengers, it didn't go too deep and they hadn't infiltrated completely. However, because of the small scale of the operation, she had been allowed to go about the Hidden Cloud Village, largely unimpeded. But now that her cover was blown it was time to get out of there. So she had sent out the proper messages and codes and they relayed the information and in the dead of the night she snuck out of the village and made her way to the rendezvous point to meet her escort.

Everything had gone perfectly until the point where she met up with the two Konoha teams who were going to escort her back into the Land of Fire's territory. Seeing those leaf headbands had been the happiest moment in her life for the last twelve years. She was almost done, almost home. But then they had been discovered, a platoon of Kumo shinobi were doing border drills and among them was the Jinchūriki, Yugito Nii.

The battle had been brutal and short. She had been injured during the battle, and while the two escort teams had rushed to her defense, giving their lives for her, she managed to make her escape. Unfortunately, at the time the only route to safety had been to head back into Lightning territory. She needed to get back home if she could, her first-hand knowledge of the workings of the Hidden Cloud Village would be invaluable. But Nami also knew her duty, she could not be captured, no matter what. If it came down to it, she would have to take her own life.

Nami stops moving and takes a moment to regain her bearings. She was currently in a rocky and hilled area with small streams running throughout. There were a few trees here and there but for the most part all of the vegetation was either grass or moss. She had been moving almost non-stop for the past couple of hours and she needed to find a safe place to lay low and rest.

She moves slowly downstream and cross over to a small alcove that was out of the way and would hopefully provide her with the cover she needed. As she lowers herself down, wincing at the sharp pain in her side as her wound tears open once again, she pulls out a kunai and holds it close to her. She holds her other hand over the wound to stem the flow of fresh blood from the tear.

Assuming she didn't run into any enemy shinobi, Nami gave herself at best, another twenty-four hours before she succumbed to the wound. That meant she had one day to make her way into friendly territory and into the hands of Konoha shinobi. She had always tried to be optimistic, but she really didn't like her odds. She would rest here for an hour, save up what strength she could, and then… well then she would just have to see what fate had in store for her.

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The spy kept their expression neutral as they watched the discussions take place between Lord Eiji and Lord Nara. Konoha had the advantage currently, in their opinion anyway. They were right to report on the Yamanaka girl to Lord Eiji, because there was no way that Lord Nara should have the information he did on Kumo's forces. Fortunately, if things progressed the way that Lord Eiji wanted them to she wouldn't be an issue for much longer. Not that it mattered, Konoha, Nami Yamata, and the impending battle were all a means to an end.

They supposed they should feel a little guilty for betraying Konoha, all things considered, but they didn't. For too long had they been stuck here, relegated to lesser duties, their potential wasted. They were stuck here, never to grow, never to advance. They hadn't been planning on betraying their home and village, but when they had been captured, and the opportunity to save their own life as well as possibly gain something from it as well arose, the temptation had been too great to bear.

Destiny was all and they would not be relegated to the sidelines, they would not walk in the shadows of others. Lord Eiji's plan was sound, his rise would happen before anyone would even be able to notice. There was no turning back, and besides, one land's traitor is another's hero. It is the victors who write history and their name would go down in the annals of history.

The spy looks around the room at the people they had served with since arriving at East Castle, and instead of guilt or fondness for those around the room, they felt a sense of resentment and anger. This was the only choice that was open to them, they had already gone too far down this path, and there was no other choice but to see it through. But this suited them just fine, because should all go to plan, they would be the only ones around to be able to tell the story of what happened.

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Yugito was agitated, but did her very best to hide it. The negotiations between Leaf and Cloud had been going on for about five hours now and sitting still for that long of a time, surrounded by enemies didn't nothing to calm her nerves. It didn't help that here little sister's team hadn't reported in or even been seen yet, there was still time before she really needed be concerned but still it was troubling that they were running so late. In addition to her still missing sister there was also the question of how in the hell that bastard Shikaku Nara knew so much about their forces. Every bluff Lord Eiji attempted on them, every statement about the strength of their forces was refuted with cold, hard, and scarily accurate facts.

Konoha was initially in the wrong due to the spy, but with Kumo's invasion of Konoha territory, without the spy, they currently didn't have a leg to stand on. While the other nations were resentful of Konoha's current success, she knew they would not look kindly upon an aggressive Kumo, and unless they could prove wrong doing on Konoha's end, they may not get the international support they needed for a sustained war against the leaf. While Kumo's forces had grown significantly since their disastrous defeat in the last war, Konoha's had as well, and without support from the other villages they may be looking at yet another stalemate if it came to a war between Fire and Lightning.

"The fact of the matter is, your forces are here illegally." Shikaku says calmly.

"Our forces are responding to a threat levied by your village. You have been spying on us for years and we will tolerate it no more." Eiji responds just as calmly.

"Fascinating, because a spy inside Kumogakure would fall under Lord Yamanaka's jurisdiction and he has no knowledge of such an event happening."

"Perhaps Lord Yamanaka has been lax in his duties." Eiji says with a slight smirk.

"Entirely possible I will concede. However, what I find fascinating is just how quickly you assembled your forces and marched onto our territory. It's as if you've been planning this for a long time and were looking for a chance break the peace. A spy is a readily convenient excuse, though as per usual Kumo provides no evidence for their provocative actions." Inoichi says dismissively.

Yugito rankles at the slight as do the other Kumo shinobi but she holds her tongue, Lord Eiji was clear in his instructions to not react or speak. Though it was galling to essentially be called liars by a snake like Inoichi Yamanaka.

"Not how I would have phrased it, but accurate. You have no tangible cause to be here, other than an intention to start a war." Takeko Nakano throws in. There was another snake that Yugito would be more than happy to silence.

"We have every right to be here, it was Konoha who broke trust first, not Kumo." Eiji says, still as calm as ever.

"All I hear are accusations Lord Eiji, empty words from a family of known liars. Or have you conveniently forgotten that it was your own brother who threatened the peace we all now enjoy with his actions against the Hyūga at the end of the last war." Inoichi says.

Lord Eiji gives no physical response, but Yugito can feel the mood in the room shift immediately. They were here to negotiate, but Inoichi Yamanaka had just stepped over a line that would prevent any meaningful negotiation to take place. Yugito tenses as she readies herself for a fight, but is surprised even further by Lord Eiji's response.

Lord Eiji gives an indulgent smile and says in a calm and reasonable voice, "I am not my brother Lord Yamanaka, he acted recklessly and foolishly, and in the end justice was served. I am here for the same reasons you are, to protect my home and my people, preferably without the shedding of blood."

Yugito was so stunned by the way that Lord Eiji had endured that insult to his family that she almost missed the look that was exchanged between Inoichi Yamanaka and Shikaku Nara. Since the beginning of the negotiations Inoichi Yamanaka had been… purposely antagonistic to their side, now she got why. Like Yugito they believed that there was more going on here than meets the eye, Inoichi had pushed the conversation beyond hope and had been rewarded for it by showing that Kumo leadership was currently, for whatever reason, unwilling to commit to a fight.

"Peace, Inoichi, you overstep your roll." Shikaku says, acting as the voice of reason.

"Forgive me Lord Nara, and you Lord Eiji."

Eiji smiles pleasantly, "There is nothing to forgive. Lord Nara, shall we continue or adjourn for the night?"

"We can continue speaking but we will not acquiesce to your demands. East Castle is still ours by right and treaty, you bring no evidence to back up your claim of a spy, so we will not pay you reparations of any kind. And seeing as it is you who brings hostile forces into our lands we will not scale back our border forces nor reduce our shinobi's trained." Shikaku says firmly. "And you bring with you a Jinchūriki, it is you Lord Eiji who escalates this situation not us, and it is you who must deescalate."

"I bring only what forces I feel necessary to protect the Land of Lightning and her people, and there are times when the best defense is a powerful offense. You should consider, my generous terms. Konoha and her forces withdraw from East Castle, seceding it and the surrounding territory to Kumo. You pay reparations for the harm caused by your spy, who we will find. And finally you disarm your overly expansive forces over the next few years as a show of good faith, faith that Konoha is as dedicated to peace as it claims." Lord Eiji smiles pleasantly as he says this, his voice completely even and reasonable.

"And," Lord Eiji adds, almost as an afterthought. "You may want to consider your current situation. We have you surrounded, we outnumber you, if war is what we wanted, you would all be dead now."

"Lord Eiji, let us not mar these negotiations with undue bluster, you know as well as I do that with your current forces, you are not likely to take this castle, not without a significant, more than likely crippling loss of shinobi on your side." Shikaku says, watching Eiji almost casually. But there was a tensity in his eyes that betrayed just how focused he was.

"I think you overestimate your chances." Lord Eiji says, this time his voice is a little harder, a little more severe. The implied threat of what would happen if Konoha didn't acquiesce to his demands.

"And I think you underestimate just how prepared for you we are. If you'd like I can give you the numbers again, we know exactly how many chūnin and jōnin you have at your disposal." Shikaku reminds him, appearing to not be the least bit phased by Lord Eiji's threat.

"More Kumo shinobi will arrive and we do have…" Eiji trails off as he glances over at Yugito, the threat of her power left unsaid. Yugito has to fight to keep from rolling her eyes, because, yeah… that was subtle…

Shikaku gives a polite, but very slight nod of his to her, acknowledging her presence and power, before turning his attention back to Eiji. "More Konoha shinobi will arrive as well, and I promise you, you will need her."

Shikaku and Eiji stare each other down and in what Yugito can tell is a calculated move on his part, Lord Eiji backs down first. "Perhaps that is enough negotiation for one day, let us retire and rest and think on what has been said today. The cease fire is still in effect as far as I'm concerned, let us not rush to war but move slowly and carefully to ensure peace."

Yugito's skin crawls at how oily and pandering Eiji's tone of voice and words are. He had endured their insults, he had made demands that he knew Konoha would never accept, and then backed down. Whatever Lord Eiji was planning had better be good, because from where Yugito was sitting Lord Eiji was doing everything in his power to all but cave in to Konoha.

Shikaku studies Eiji carefully for a moment, before looking to Inoichi and Takeko Nakano, some kind of unspoken communication passing between the before Shikaku speaks. "Of course Lord Eiji, you are correct, let us not rush to war but move towards peace. We shall resume the negotiations again tomorrow, at the same time?"

"Whenever it is most convenient for you."

"Then tomorrow it is." Shikaku says, standing and everyone around the table following suit. They respectfully bow to each other and then Yugito takes her place by Eiji's side as they are escorted out of the castle.

"Yugito." Lord Eiji says quietly so as not to be overheard. "Come to my tent tonight, when the night is darkest. Do not be seen, I have a very special mission for you."

Yugito doesn't say anything, instead she gives a slight nod of her head in acknowledgement. Hopefully she would learn more about what Lord Eiji was planning and that this was all leading somewhere, or better yet, hopefully Lord Raikage would get here soon.

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Once he's confident that the Kumo shinobi are far enough away, Shikaku turns to Takeko Nakano. "What are your thoughts? You've had the most experience with this Lord Eiji."

Takeko nods her head, her face marred with a frown. "Honestly, that was completely out of character for him. The insult to his brother and family… we should be in the middle of a fight right now, not talking. This confirms was you and Lord Yamanaka have suspected, there is more going on here than Kumo's reaction to finding a spy."

"It's like he's stalling for time, more Kumo soldiers will arrive yes, however, every day that they wait is another day that Konoha has to prepare its defenses. He must know that we will never agree to all of those demands, if any of them. Reparations, maybe, but only if they had Nami Yamata in custody. He's stalling for time and I can't figure out why." Inoichi says.

"Eiji is a…" Takeko lets out a slight growl of frustration, "Hothead isn't the word I would use, but he's swift to anger and quick to take insult. He's smart though and calculating, whatever he has planned is not good and we must assume that with his current actions that things are still within acceptable parameters for him." Takeko says, then turning to Inoichi, "Whatever his plans are, he'll take what you said personally, he'll try to hurt you in whatever way he can."

Inoichi hums in agreement, troubled. It was necessary for the greater good to provoke Lord Eiji that way, his actions had been too strange to not push him and see where his mind was. He'd made an enemy today, and while he didn't fear for himself, Rin was currently behind enemy lines. He could only take solace right now in the fact that Eiji didn't know his daughter was hidden inside his territory.

"The best thing we can do right now is stall for time. Give Hizashi and his team the time they need to find Nami Yamata, as well as give Konoha the time it needs to fortify its defenses. Once Nami Yamata has been retrieved, Kumo will have no other recourse than to back down. They can't afford to go to war with us without the support of the other villages and they know it." Shikaku says.

"It might not matter to them, I'm troubled. The speed with which they martialed this army is… it's faster than I anticipated. My apologies, I thought I had kept a better watch on them." Takeko says, the frustration evident in her voice. "It may be that they want a war, whatever happens here."

"Nobody blames you Takeko, you have been a stalwart defender of our border for many years now." Shikaku says with a kind smile. "Don't forget, they are ninja just like we are, deception and subterfuge is at play on both ends, and sometimes… sometimes the other side outplays you. All we can do now is handle the situation as it evolves."

"Thank you for your kind words, Lord Nara." Takeko says, grateful for the sentiment, but unable to accept it completely. She was in charge of the defense of the border with Lightning, the fact that they were able to build up their forces like this and right under her nose was unacceptable. She had sworn to defend her home whatever the cost and now it looked like she may very well have failed. Perhaps the Hokage had been wrong to entrust her with it.

"So how do you want to handle the negotiations tomorrow?" Inoichi asks.

Shikaku sighs, "Unfortunately, if we are correct in our assumption that Lord Eiji is stalling for time, then it won't matter how we handle it. Whatever he proposes we won't agree to and whatever we propose he won't agree to. However, to maintain the pretense of ignorance, Inoichi I would like for you to not attend tomorrow. You handled your roll perfectly today, unfortunately that means by any reasonable standard you were out of line. It's best if they think you are being relegated to the sidelines."

Inoichi nods his head, "Agreed, I'll use the time to familiarize myself with the castle and its defenses."

"I'll have Yuko show you around, she knows this castle better than anyone." Takeko says, volunteering her little sister.

Inoichi nods his head in gratitude, "I would greatly appreciate it."

"Well, that's all for now then, I'm going to go find Chouza and fill him in, Inoichi, are you coming?" Shikaku asks, not because Inoichi really needed to accompany him but because he wanted to keep his friends mind off of Rin. He knew he wouldn't be successful in the slightest, but he still had to try.

Inoichi nods his head in the affirmative to Shikaku's question but his thoughts are solely with his youngest daughter. His actions in provoking Lord Eiji had been necessary to ferret out the enemy's strategies, but in doing so he put a target on himself and by extension her.

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Eiji was furious, he had been fuming ever since that son of whore Inoichi Yamanaka had called his brother and family liars. They were proud shinobi of Kumo, patriots of a noble line who had served their village and land faithfully. How dare that Konoha snake talk down at him, question his brother and his family's honor. He would rip that bastard's entrails out and hang him with them, but first he would torture the man in the worst way possible.

His daughter was already dead, the rumor of the potency of her sensor abilities had been more than confirmed for him with how much knowledge that smug Nara had on his forces, and so the girl had to die. Up until now it was going to be a quick, clean death, but now… oh now, he would draw it out for days, her screams would echo through the land. He would send her piece by bloody and broken piece to Inoichi Yamanaka, and then once he was through he would find and kill the bastard.

It was nearing three in the morning when Yugito Nii finally arrived at his tent. Initially he wanted her nearby when his plans came to fruition, then he could direct her rage at the Leaf shinobi, but now he had a different task for the monster.

"You have a mission for me, sir?"

"Yes, come with me." Eiji orders, and he doesn't wait for a response, instead he sneaks out of the tent, confident that she is following close behind him.

He leads her through the darkness until he comes to the hidden tunnel's entrance that he knew his spy would be coming through shortly.

"Lord Eiji, what is my mission?" Yugito asks, she was wary right now, she knew Lord Eiji was in a foul mood.

"Konoha has only sent one team to retrieve the spy, among them is Inoichi Yamanaka's daughter. Bring her to me, alive. Kill the rest."

"Sir, wouldn't my time be better spent hunting down the spy?" The Konoha spy was the lynch pin in all of this, it was a waste of her time to send her after some girl, no matter whose daughter she was.

"You have your mission!" Eiji snarls.

Yugito's eyes harden and a bit of killing intent slips out and Eiji takes a step back, visibly frightened by the potency of the demon's rage. He was a powerful jōnin and he was angry and insulted, but he wasn't stupid enough to pick a fight with a Jinchūriki, especially without backup.

"Forgive me, I am angry but it is inexcusable of me to take it out on you. I promise you, this mission is not one of vanity. I am angry with Inoichi Yamanaka, yes, however he is also one of the Leaf Village's highest ranking officials. If I can capture his daughter, then that will provide me with a distinct advantage over one of their greatest strategists. Please, will you accept this mission?"

Yugito is somewhat mollified, but not entirely convinced, still Lord Eiji was a superior officer. "I will bring her to you, but I don't even know where to begin."

"I can help with that." Another voice calls out and a figure steps out of the shadows.

Yugito is startled by the new presence. She had been so focused on Eiji that she had forgotten to keep stock of her surroundings. When she sees who it is that has just joined them her eyes widen shock. "You?"

Eiji gives a malicious smirk. "Yugito, I would like you to meet our spy on the inside. They know exactly where to start and are going to sneak you in through East Castle and set you on your path. Find this Yamanaka girl and bring her to me, don't worry about the spy, our forces will find her eventually."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

A quietly fumed as he stared off into the distance. It had been a mistake to follow that fool Eiji's plan. He should have just had the spy arrested and been done with it. But at the time he had been furious that a spy had been under their very noses for so long and especially with the increases to security that he had implemented. The chance to completely eradicate this spy ring and quickly had sounded like too good of an opportunity to pass up. But now, instead of following his instincts and capturing her immediately, he had waited and now the spy had escaped and they were on the brink of a war that his nation didn't need.

Despite the loss of face after the end of the last war his people had thrived, had taken that defeat and made themselves even stronger. A war was in nobody's best interest right now, and he wasn't willing to sacrifice his shinobi for nothing. He would arrive at East Castle and handle this himself. Konoha would make reparations, his forces would be allowed to increase their numbers on the border and that would be the end of it.

It had been a mistake to trust Eiji to handle this, his brother had been the same way, too quick to act, too aggressive. A large scale invasion like he had been told had occurred was too provocative. Who knew what was happening in Mist, but Onoki, that paranoid old bastard would view any overtly aggressive acts with suspicion, even if they were against Konoha. For a time they may agree to an alliance, but Stone had always been xenophobic and any such alliance would be short lived and tense.

And as for the sand village, they currently weren't relevant. However, if it did come to a war with the Leaf, it was more likely than not going to end up with them siding with the Leaf Village once more. This in turn would lead to a three way war between the great villages. Leaf and Sand versus Stone and Cloud, and eventually Leaf and Sand versus Stone versus Cloud. The current stability of the nations was good for all, a war benefitted no one. It frustrating that the peace currently favored Konoha more than the rest of them, but they all benefited.

He glances out the corner of his eye when he hears to sets of footsteps approach him. His little brother B and one of his most trusted jōnin, Samui.

"Yo bro, how's it go, yo?"

A pinches his brow and he hears Samui sigh, B had taken to rapping recently and he really wasn't very good. He wasn't sure why he had brought his brother along, his brother had begged to go and he had acquiesced on a whim. Maybe it was from the guilt he felt for keeping his brother trapped within the village. It was for his own good, to protect him, but he knew how suffocating it was for his brother. This in return had also forced him to rely more heavily on Yugito Nii, but she bore that additional weight with dignity and grace. If only all of his shinobi could act more like her. He had placed too much pressure on her as of late, it was time to pull it back a bit.

"Lord Raikage, how can we be of assistance?" Samui asks.

A thinks on it for a moment. "When we arrive I want your team to locate Yugito immediately and bring her to me. B, Yugito, as well as you and your team will act as my body guard for the negotiations. You will stay close and observe only. Samui, I trust your judgement, you will assist in the negotiations."

"I will not fail you, Lord Raikage." Samui says with a bow.

"I can't believe that Eiji mucked it all up, guess we'll be the ones to pick it all up, fool, ya fool."

A let's out an audible sigh, "And you will not speak at all." The last thing he needed was his brother rapping at the Konoha delegates.

B's shoulders slump and Samui releases a soft but pleasant sounding laugh and a slight smirk appears on his face as well. But as it does, A hardens his resolve. He was the Raikage, the Lightning Shadow, he would stand before this brewing storm and defy it. B, Yugito, Samui, his village, his family, his people, he would protect them all. Konoha needed to answer for their crimes, but his people would not suffer for the mistakes of others. Hiruzen Sarutobi and whoever he sent to represent him, that fool Eiji, and any others who would threaten the peace that his people enjoyed would answer to him or face his wrath.

 **s**

 **xXx-Author's Note-xXx**

 **s**

 **So I do apologize, still no Rin/Quinn in this chapter, but she will be reappearing soon. I'm just trying to really set up everything that is happening and there is so much of it too. You have Eiji and the Konoha spy and what they are planning. You have what's going on with the Ino-Shika-Cho trio and the negotiations on Konoha's side. Then there is Nami Yamata and what's happening with her, and then finally of course what is happening with Rin/Quinn and her team. It's a lot to cover and keep track of. Anyway I hope you all are enjoying the story so far and I will update as quickly as I can.**


	32. Chapter 31

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto. Please forgive any spelling and grammar errors, I try to catch them but I know I'm not always successful.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 31-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn stared blankly out into the pitch dark night as she stood watch. She was sitting with her back against a large rock while the rest of team slept closer to the wall inside an alcove along the river to avoid as much of the elements as they could as well as to help keep them hidden from wandering patrols. Because of how dangerous it was, no fire could be lit, the night wind biting cold, making their situation even more miserable. But Quinn's mind was too focused elsewhere to truly be bothered by the cold.

She was a murderer. She had taken an innocent life for no other reason than convenience to a mission that she wasn't even sure was possible anymore. So much time had passed that Quinn wasn't convinced that Nami Yamata wasn't already dead. This was nothing like when she had fought Mizuki, his death had been in self-defense and in the defense of her friend and teacher. As much as she hated that it had come to that, she knew it had been the only option she had, as cold as it sounded she could justify it. That girl's death, her murder, had been nothing like it.

 _Quinn rushed towards the blonde haired girl. The girl's blue eyes were just starting to widen with horror as her mind caught up with the speed in which she had seen her team die, she turns just in time to see Quinn reach her. Before she can make a sound Quinn brings her blade forward and around in a powerful and fast sweep. The weeks of training with Yugao-sensei coming to bear._

 _Her strike is true, perfect in speed, strength and technique and Quinn is showered in a rain of blood as the young girl's head topples to the ground and rolls away. Her body stays standing for only a second before collapsing as well._

 _The adrenaline wares off and Quinn's mind catches up with what she had just done. She looks over and she catches the glassy and terrified gaze of her target's head, lying a few feet away from her. Quinn lets out a sharp gasp and drops her blade, horrified by what she had just done. She feels arms wrap around her, and a hand covers her mouth just in time to muffle her screams._

 _Yugao is whispering quietly in her ear, that it was okay, that she would be okay, but Quinn knew that was a lie. This wasn't okay, this was as far from okay as it could possibly get and she would never be okay after this. Yugao shushes her gently, telling her that she needs to be silent. Quinn manages to stop her screaming but can't stop her crying._

 _Yugao turns her around and pulls her in, holding her closely and rocking her gently back and forth. Hizashi and Hana exchange a sad look before they begin to clean up the blood and seal away the bodies. Standard procedure, a ninja's body had value even in death. The three Kumo genin and their sensei would be taken back to Konoha and studied._

 _"Leave it." Yugao orders when Hana and Hizashi finally get to the girl who Rin had killed. "She needs to be the one to do this."_

 _"Yugao." Hizashi protests, his tone disapproving._

" _It's no trouble." Hana says, glaring at Yugao._

 _Yugao however shakes her head no at them, before pulling away slightly from Rin. "Rin, I need you to look at me."_

 _Rin nods her head and looks up at her, her breathing is quick and tense, like she's trying but failing to calm herself down, her body is shaking._

 _Yugao fights the urge to send Rin back and instead says, "Rin, we still have a job to do, do you understand?"_

 _Rin nods her head, but the motion is jerky and violent._

" _I need to hear you say it."_

" _Yes, sensei." Rin mumbles quietly, her voice slightly cracking._

" _Say it again so I can hear you." Yugao orders a little more firmly._

 _Rin swallows and for a moment Yugao isn't sure if the younger girl is going to throw up or not, but when she answers her voice is steady and clear, "Yes sensei."_

" _Good, now, just like you practiced in our anatomy lessons, I want you to prepare and seal the girl's body."_

 _Rin's face goes ashen white, a stark contrast to her blood splattered face, but she responds once more with "Yes sensei." And with that she gets to work. She moves the body and lays it flat, her own body trembling as she does so. Yugao then watches, her heart aching for her student, as Rin grabs the nearby head and places it next to the body. That action proves to be too much for her student and she quickly moves away and begins to throw up violently, falling to her knees as she does so._

 _"That's enough." Hana snarls, glaring at Yugao. She then grabs a scroll to finish the job whether Yugao approved or not, Hizashi moving next to her and performing the hand seals for the earth jutsu that would cover up all of the blood._

 _Yugao moves to her student's side and holds Rin's pony tail out of the way as she vomits._

That had been two days ago. Their movement had been slow but largely unimpeded due to her sensor abilities. Nobody was getting close to them unless they let them, but unfortunately because Quinn had no idea what Nami Yamata's chakra felt like, she couldn't just find her. There were plenty of chakra signatures around that she could detect but none of them screamed wounded Konoha shinobi to her. Though, admittedly, her mind wasn't all that focused.

They had gotten as close to the initial site where Nami had almost been captured as they dared and thankfully it was close enough that Hana's hounds had been able to pick up a faint scent. They were following it as best they could, avoiding enemy patrols, but neither she nor Yugao had been able to pick up a chakra signature that might belong to their target. And with every hour that passed the scent got weaker as well, which meant eventually they wouldn't even have a general direction that they should go.

Quinn is broken from her thoughts when she hears the quiet whimper from San as the dog gently nuzzles up against her. Quinn leans up against the dog and wraps her arms around him, he was so warm, especially against the cold night air. The image of holding that girl's head in her hands come to her mind and she chokes back a sob, fighting with everything she had to not cry. San leans in closer, not knowing why his charge was sad only that his alpha had told him to protect her.

"Your shift's up." Hana says, coming and sitting down on her other side, the other two Haimaru brothers joining them.

Quinn pulls away from San, straightening up and wiping her eyes, "I can take this watch as well, if you want me to. I'm not tired."

"You're exhausted, and don't try to deny it. You need to sleep."

Quinn brings her knees up to her chest, "Please don't make me sleep," she begs quietly. "I can't close my eyes without seeing… her."

Hana nods her head and wraps an arm around her. "Alright," Hana says quietly as Rin leans against her, shivering, though Hana doubts it's due to the cold, "two heads are better than one, we can both keep watch."

"I'm sorry." Quinn whispers after a few moments. I'm sorry I'm so weak, I'm sorry I'm a burden, I'm sorry that I'm a murderer. I'm sorry for existing.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Nami gasped in pain as the wound in her side tore open once more and she reaches down to try and staunch the bleeding with her hand. She was running as fast as her feet would carry her but she knew it wouldn't be enough. She had two Kumo shinobi on her tail, and gaining fast. It was a fool's errand to run, she should just end it now before they caught her, but she didn't want to die.

She leaps forward, sending a burst of her dwindling chakra to her legs, hoping in vain that it would help. She lands in a slick of mud and trips, she throws her free hand down to catch herself but lands wrong. There is a sharp cracking sound as she breaks her wrist. Nami winces in pain, and she can hear the sound of her pursuers getting closer. She moves her unbroken hand from stopping her bleeding wound, the warm blood gushes out in stark contrast to the cold mud.

Her bloodied hand, shakes as she reaches for her kunai, the footsteps of her pursuers getting louder and louder. Her hand grips the metal blade just as they reach her. It had been a stupid mistake on her part, when she had stopped to rest for an hour she had fallen asleep. It was only an accident on their part that she had woken up in time to run, one of them had misstepped and splashed a foot into the river.

The sound had startled her awake, alerting the Kumo shinobi to her presence. She took off as fast as her feet would carry her, no longer worrying about stealth. She had been discovered, it was too late to do anything. She should have slit her own throat then and there, but instead she ran. Hoping futilely that she might escape. But she hadn't and now it was time to end it.

The two Kumo shinobi rush at her as she brings the blade up to her throat, she can feel the slight sting of the blade as it begins to cut her flesh, but she was too slow and a strong hand grips her wrist and prevents her from doing anything more than nicking herself.

The Kumo shinobi's eyes are hard as he glares down at her, "You are going to pay for what you have done."

Nami glares back at him, but keeps her mouth firmly shut. She wouldn't give these Kumo bastards the satisfaction of getting even one syllable from her.

"What, nothing to say spy?" The other Kumo shinobi growls. "It doesn't matter, our people will have you talking soon enough."

Nami's eyes move rapidly between the two Kumo shinobi assessing her situation, maybe if she wasn't so weak or injured, she probably could have fought them both off and won. Of course if she wasn't injured then she wouldn't be in this predicament in the first place. No help was coming and slitting her own throat wasn't likely to happen. She knew she couldn't be captured, if for no other reason than she wouldn't allow herself to be taken and tortured. She wouldn't betray her village, she had done her duty for over a decade now, one last act of patriotism and then she would be done. It would be messy and painful, but there was nothing else to do.

Nami gathers chakra into her jaw, wanting to make sure that when she bit her own tongue off it would be a clean cut. She would bleed out in a matter of minutes and then this would all be over. Not a quick or clean death, but considering the alternative was capture and torture, it was the best she was going to get. However just as she's about to bite down a loud voice calls out drawing her attention as well as the two Kumo shinobi.

" **Fire Style, Phoenix Flower Jutsu!** "

A young blonde girl wearing a Leaf headband comes jumping into view, small fireballs swirling around her before launching at the two Kumo Shinobi. They jump away from her, easily dodging the flames, only to discover that they had moved right into the attacks of two more Leaf shinobi who arrive on scene. One of them is a Hyūga who slams his open palm into one of the Kumo shinobi's chest. The other Kumo ninja is cut in half by a katana wielded by a purple haired Kunoichi.

A brown haired kunoichi with red triangles painted on her cheek rushes to her side while all of this is happening. Her hands are already glowing with the light green color of medical chakra. "Hey," She says with a comforting smile, "don't worry, everything's going to be alright."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Hey kid, are you ready to head out?" Yugao asks.

Quinn nods her head, it wasn't like she had a choice the matter. "Yes sensei."

Yugao places a hand on Quinn's shoulder, "Listen, Rin, I know these last few days have been tough on you. You are so early into your career, having to do something like that, it's rough. Even for more experienced shinobi, killing like that is hard. And gods, you're still so green but… we're still in a very dangerous situation and the life of a fellow Leaf ninja depends on us doing our job. I wish I could have started you out on something easier, less brutal, but it wasn't my call this time. We were given our orders and we were given our mission and we need to complete it, no matter how we may feel. I need you to get your head straight, because we need you Rin. With your ability, you are our best shot at getting out of here alive. I know killing that girl was hard on you, and I wish I could give you the time you need and deserve to deal with it, but I can't. We're on the clock and time is running out, every second we waste hurts Ms. Yamata's chances of survival and increases our odds of getting caught."

Quinn looks down, unable to meet her teacher's eyes. "I'm sorry…" She whispers softly.

"I know." Yugao says with an understanding look, "I know. None of this is fair, none of it. When I told you that you would have to sacrifice yourself to the darkness, I meant exactly moments like this. It's hard and it sucks, but you need to stay focused, otherwise you could get us all killed. Once this mission is over I'll be right there with you, helping you come to terms with what happened, but right now I need you to bottle it. Put what you're feeling into the deepest recesses of your mind and suppress it. It's not fair of me to ask that of you, but this is the path you've chosen and life isn't fair, especially not the life of a kunoichi."

Quinn gives a weak smile, bottling up her emotions was a Fabray specialty. "Yes sensei, I… I'll do whatever it is you need me to do."

Yugao gives a small nod of approval. Cruel to be kind, emotional trauma could be dealt with at a later time, at a time when they were all safe. But right now, she needed Rin in as close to perfect fighting condition as she could get her, it was the only way she would survive.

"Alright, here's what we'll do," Hizashi calls out grabbing everyone's attention. "We'll continue to follow the river. It's our best bet unless, Hana, Yugao, or Rin, have any of you picked up something that suggests we should do otherwise?"

"No, sorry." Hana says, after looking to her dogs to see if they had picked up the scent again, having lost it during the night.

"I'm picking up signatures all around us, but nothing to go off of. How about you kid, do you sense anything?"

Quinn closes her eyes and concentrates for a moment, she picks up a couple of teams in the area but nothing to indicate where their target was. "No, nothing for me either- wait!" One of the signatures lets out a burst of energy and takes off, away from two nearby ones, she gets a strong spike of fear and desperation from them as well. Meanwhile the two other nearby signatures give pursuit. Vindication and excitement are coming from them. She had sensed them for a while, but had just thought they were a three man team of chūnin, but with this, she realized that one of them was actually a weakened jōnin.

"What is it Rin?" Hizashi asks, "What do you sense?"

"I think I may have found her but we have to hurry, two other signatures are closing in fast. We don't have a lot of time."

"Lead the way." Hizashi orders and with that they take off as fast as they can, forgoing any thought to stealth. Once they grabbed Nami Yamata they could worry about hiding again.

"They're just over that hill!" Quinn says tersely as they continue to sprint towards their target. Only moments away from their target and two enemy shinobi.

"Rin, create space between them and Ms. Yamata. Yugao and I will engage the enemy, Hana, I want you to get to her immediately." Hizashi orders as they race up the hill. The veins around his eyes become more prominent as he activates his bloodline limit.

Quinn doesn't allow herself to hesitate or lose focus and as soon as she's at the top the hill she leaps high into the air, her hands making the tiger sign, " **Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!** " Six fireballs swirl around her before launching themselves at the two enemy shinobi. They easily dodge them, but her goal wasn't to hit them, just create some distance between them and Nami Yamata.

Hizashi and Yugao spring into action and quickly kill the two Kumo chūnin while Hana and her hounds move to Nami Yamata's side. The Haimaru brothers form a protective ring around them, while Hana begins to assess and treat Nami's wounds.

Quinn makes her way over to Hana as do Hizashi and Yugao. "How is she?" Hizashi asks.

"Better, now that you're here." Nami chuckles weakly.

"Not good, at least three busted ribs, not to mention the cut itself. There might even be damage to the lung, I'm not sure, I'm a field medic not a fully trained doctor." Hana's hands work carefully over the bleeding wound, closing it as quickly as she can. "She'll need surgery for sure, but this should hold her over until we can get her to a real doctor."

"I'm tougher than I look." Nami jokes, her face is pale and she winces as she tries to sit up, Hana assisting her.

"My name is Hizashi Hyuga, I'm the leader of the team sent to rescue you." Hizashi introduces himself, kneeling down next to her, "It's an honor to meet a hero such as yourself and you don't need to worry anymore, we're going to get you home."

Nami nods her head and smiles in gratitude, "I don't know about hero, but I'll definitely take the help getting home."

"My name is Yugao Uzuki, and I think hero is the exact word I would use. You've given up a lot to protect our home, I swear to you, we'll get you home safe." Yugao says, as she introduces herself.

"My name is Hana Inuzuka, and I'm going to take good care of you." Hana says, as she takes Nami's broken wrist and starts to perform some basic first aid jutsu on it.

"And what about you kid, how'd you find yourself in this pleasant little corner of hell?" Nami says with a playful grin. Seeing these Konoha shinobi had boosted her spirits more than she had ever thought possible. For the first time since her escape she actually believed she might make it home alive.

The girl gives a weak smile in return, "Just lucky I guess, my name is Rin Yamanaka."

"Yamanaka?" Nami asks, unable to believe it.

"Yeah… you were on the same genin team as my mother…"

"You're Megumi's kid…" Nami chuckles, choking up a bit. Her best friend and teammate's kid was right here. She had been a newborn the last time she had seen her, and now here she was, all grown up.

Quinn nods her head. "She's really missed you."

"I've missed her too."

"There, that should hold you over for now." Hana says, letting go of Nami's hand. Hana and Yugao then both help Nami get to her feet.

"Can you travel?" Hizashi asks.

Nami gives him a confident smirk, belying just how exhausted she was. "You lead and I'll follow." She says throwing a playful wink towards Rin.

Hizashi nods his head, accepting her word for now, before turning to Rin. "Rin, what's our situation."

Quinn closes her eyes and tries to clear her mind and concentrate. "Dammit… We've got two teams of three closing in on us, my jutsu must have alerted them to our presence, I'm sorry."

"You did what you had to, don't worry about it kid." Yugao says.

"Yugao is correct, you got those Kumo shinobi away from Ms. Yamata, that's all that matters."

"Call me Nami, especially you kid."

Quinn nods her head.

"What can you tell me about them, how strong are they?" Hizashi asks.

Quinn closes her eyes and concentrates on them again. "They're all jōnin level ninja by my estimate, none of them are as strong as you and sensei individually, but there are six of them so it'll be trouble if they catch us. One team is closer than the other, but they'll meet up before they reach us. They will be here in a few minutes, we should move, now."

"Agreed. Hana, you will assist Nami, Yugao you will take the rear guard. Rin, you and I will take the lead. We'll move south as quickly as we can. Once we reach Fire territory we should be okay, and once Nami is safe we'll decide how to proceed from there. Rin, keep aware and let me know as soon as anything changes."

"One more thing, she's not close by, but…"

"But what?" Hizashi asks.

"The jinchūriki is in the area and she's furious. She's not close but if they catch up to us and we're forced into a fight…"

"We'll likely draw its attention." Hizashi finishes, not relishing the thought of facing an angry jinchūriki.

"Well then, I guess we'll just have to be extra careful to not get caught." Nami says with a cocky grin. "I've managed to stay uncaptured for the past decade, a few more hours won't hurt."

"That's the spirit." Hana says with a chuckle. "Ichi, Nii, flank." Hana orders, and two of her hounds move to guard their sides. She then says, "San." And motions to Rin, and the third dog moves to stand by his charge.

"Alright, speed is everything people, we're almost home. Let's move!" And with that Team Hizashi along with Nami take off, moving as quickly towards Konoha territory as Nami's injuries would allow.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Yugito Nii was terrified and furious, her emotional state was in such an upheaval that it was even affecting Matatabi. It had been a shock to see who the spy was and an even bigger surprise at how easily they had led her through the castle undetected. And from how deeply into their territory the tunnel went it was no surprise to Yugito that Konoha had been able to get a team past their blockade. But when she had exited the tunnel a faint scent on the air had left her devastated and sick with worry.

Blood.

And not just anyone's blood, her sister's blood. The body was nowhere to be found and when she had torn up the earth around the area all she had found was more blood… too much blood. The earth jutsu used to cover it up had been competently done, and would have hidden the scent from just about everyone. But with her heightened senses, thanks to Matatabi who resided within her, she had picked up on her sister's scent immediately. She wasn't dead, she refused to believe that Yoko was dead. She had been seriously wounded and captured and she needed to be rescued. Fuck Eiji and his mission, whatever harm had befallen her sister, once she found them, she would pay it back on Konoha tenfold.

 _ **"We will find her."**_ Matatabi whispers in her mind. _**"We will find her and they will face our wrath."**_

Yugito doesn't respond, she just keeps moving, following the ever weakening scent, moving as quickly as she could. Yoko didn't have much time, she had to reach her, she had to save her. Her little sister was hurt and she needed her big sis, Yugito, to save her.

"I'm coming Yoko, I'm coming, just hang on a little longer!" Yugito growls, her eyes flashing with demonic power.

 **s**

 **xXx-Author's Note -xXx**

 **s**

 **Alright, it's a little abrupt, but we're definitely moving the story forward now. Maybe I could have set things up a little better and drawn thing out, maybe I should have waited a little longer to have Team Hizashi meet up with Nami, but I also don't want this story to drag on and eventually you just have to push the story forward. Even if it isn't as smoothly done as I would have liked. Anyway, thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed it, and I will update again as soon as I can.**


	33. Chapter 32

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto. Also, please forgive any spelling or grammar errors, I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 32-xXx**

 **s**

"Damn fool, that castle is wicked cool, ya fool, ya fool." Killer B says in awe as East Castle comes into view.

A however growls, he'd known that Eiji had acted too aggressively and botched this all up but to see their forces surrounding the castle like this drove home the scale of just how difficult this situation was. In addition to his ninja forces, local warriors and samurai had been called to arms. Of course, other than those from the Land of Iron, most Samurai were of no concern to a well-trained ninja.

Still the numbers were impressive and he had to assume that in addition to the Konoha shinobi stationed at the castle, that it had to be manned by various Samurai and fire nation soldiers as well. A lot of lives depended on how these negotiations went. For Eiji's sake, the spy had better have been captured, and the negotiations with the Konoha delegates had better be on track.

"Samui." A barks out, calling her to him.

"Yes, Lord Raikage." She says with a bow as she appears beside him.

"Run ahead and let Eiji and the rest of the jōnin commanders know that I have arrived and I want to be briefed immediately. Then locate Yugito and bring her to me."

"As you command. Karui, Omoi, let's go."

"Oh man, what if we can't find Yugito?" Omoi asks, his voice trailing off as he and Karui follow Samui on her mission.

"Stay close to me." A orders as he walks towards the main Lightning encampment.

"Awe, come on bro, just leave it to B, yo, I'll steal this show, and make the Leaf go, go."

"Enough!" A snaps, "This situation is bad enough already, I need you take this seriously and not act like a fool."

B's shoulder's slump, "Hey, come on bro, I'm taking this serious, alright? I won't mess up and I won't screw around… yo."

A closes his eyes for a moment, regretting his harsh words, "I know. I know I can count on you, now come on, we've got a long day ahead of us."

"Hey just leave it to me and my sick rhyme, and I'll have that time pass in no time." B says with a laugh, accepting his brother's words as the olive branch they were, it was as close to an apology as his bro was capable of.

A face palms at his brother's horrible rhyming of the words 'rhyme' and 'time'. He loved his brother more than anyone, but… damn. This really was going to be a long day.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Lord Raikage, the command tent is this way and your jōnin await your arrival." Samui says, reappearing by her Lord's side.

"And where is Yugito?" A asks, glancing around and not seeing her.

"Yeah, where is the Killer Queen to my Killer King? Yugito Nii is the best there be, fo sho." B raps as he looks around. Yugito was the coolest and he greatly enjoyed spending time with her and her little sis.

Samui gets a hard look in her eyes, "Unfortunately Lord Raikage, Lord Eiji sent her out on some kind of secret mission. She hasn't been seen since last night."

The Raikage growls when he hears that. He had allowed Yugito to assist in this mission at Eiji's request because he needed someone here who he trusted implicitly to do what was right and do so competently. She wasn't sent here to be Eiji's personal errand girl. "Lead the way." A orders, it was time he took command.

As Samui leads them to the command tents B leans over and whispers to Omoi, "Damn, big bro is pissed, I'd feel sorry for Eiji but that damn fool ain't gonna be missed. Ya hear?"

Omoi nods his head, he was only a chūnin but because he was on the same team as Samui, who worked with the Raikage a lot, he was used to being around exceptionally powerful ninja like the Raikage and B. "I hear you. Unfortunately, because Yugito is missing I'm worried that this is the end of the Cloud Village as we know it."

"What!? Fool, how could you say something like that ya fool!?"

"Well… think about it, because we couldn't find Yugito, Lord Raikage will be in a foul mood, and because he's in foul mood, when he talks to those Konoha delegates he'll-"

"Shut up! I'm not listening to all of that again!" Karui snaps, "Lord B, don't listen to him, he's an idiot and he overthinks everything… well what qualifies for thinking for him anyway."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Lord Nara! Sister!"

"Yuko, what is it?" Takeko asks, as her sister come barging into the planning room.

"This is huge, I've just received word, our watch has spotted the Raikage, he's here." Yuko Nakano says, slightly breathless. She had run all the way from the wall to the war room. "Lord Akimichi can confirm it."

Shikaku and Inoichi share a look, this was either really good news or really bad news. Lord Eiji wasn't going to negotiate with them, whereas the Raikage might. However, the Raikage didn't exactly have a reputation for being the most levelheaded or reasonable of men.

"Thoughts?" Shikaku asks.

"If the Raikage is here then war in inevitable." Takeko says, "He's here to take command personally."

"Yuko, how many came with him?" Inoichi asks.

Yuko shakes her head, "Not too many, a couple of teams but, the other jinchūriki is with him."

"That's certainly not a good sign, bringing both jinchūriki here." Inoichi says.

"I agree, however if he were planning for war wouldn't he have brought more troops?" Shikaku muses out loud. "By all accounts he's restricted the 8 tails to the village so his presence here is troubling but still..."

"Then war is the only explanation." Takeko says.

"You may be right." Shikaku says with a frown, but he can't help but feel that he was missing something.

"They still don't have the spy." Inoichi says. "Without Nami Yamata, they won't get the international support they need. Having both jinchūriki here could be an intimidation tactic, a show of force to manipulate us into acting prematurely."

Shikaku arches a brow as he considers that, "Could be, intimidate us, and force us into a preemptive strike. If we attack first then they don't need the spy, we'll be the aggressors…"

"With all due respect to Lord Yamanaka, I think he's overthinking things. Two jinchūriki is overkill. Why even bring one, let alone two, unless you plan to use them." Takeko disagrees.

"It's your call, but I don't think we should act hastily." Inoichi says.

"And to not act could be just as big a mistake, but Lord Yamanaka is correct in that it is your decision and we will follow your lead." Takeko says.

Shikaku is silent as he considers all of his options, finally with a sigh he speaks, "Send word to all of our forces, I want them in battle positions, but they are not to engage. I only want them ready just in case. We'll see if the Raikage is willing to continue negotiations. If he is, I don't want to do anything to provoke him further, if he's not I want us ready. Inoichi, change in plans, I want you there as well. With the Raikage here I want your insight into the matter, even if your presence is provocative to Lord Eiji. Takeko, you will join me as well."

Both Inoichi and Takeko nod in agreement.

"Yuko, send word to Chouza, let him know that he is to ready our defenses."

"Of course Lord Nara." And with that she turns and leaves.

"Things are coming to a head. These next few hours will decide everything." Shikaku says.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"We need to find a place to stop!" Hana calls out as Nami Yamata begins to cough violently. "Nami can't keep up this pace."

"I'm fine…" Nami wheezes before breaking into another coughing fit, this time it's accompanied by her spitting up some blood.

"No she isn't, any first aid I've given her was superficial and rushed. I need time to go over her injuries properly or it won't matter if the enemy reaches us or not." Hana says.

"I'm sorry to be such a burden." Nami says weakly as she wipes her mouth.

Hana smiles at her, "You're only a burden if you act recklessly. Let's be smart about this, time is a factor I know, but we'll just have to make time for this."

Hizashi nods his agreement and then concentrates for a moment, using his Byakugan to try and locate a good place for them to hide that was nearby. "Follow me, there's a small cave nearby, I think we can safely hide in there for a moment."

"Hizashi, I'll go lay out some false trails, that should help throw them off and buy us some more time." Yugao says.

"Good idea."

"I'll go with you." Quinn says quickly.

"Sorry kid, it's too dangerous." Yugao says.

Quinn glares at her because the last thing in the world she wanted to hear right now was how dangerous it was. They should have thought of that before sending her on this godforsaken mission. Quinn takes a deep breath, calming herself down from just how pissed off her sensei saying that made her. Emotion wouldn't work here, only reason.

"Sensei, the fact of the matter is we're all in danger here, but more dangerous than me coming with you is anyone going out alone. I'm going with you. Besides, with us hiding, even with your sensor abilities you may have trouble finding the group again, I won't."

"Fair enough." Yugao says, "How about it Hizashi, you're the squad leader?"

Hizashi takes a moment to think, he was hesitant to send Rin out, her mind wasn't in a clear place right now and separating her from the larger group was dangerous. She was doing better today it seemed, but he was still worried about her. Also, Yugao had years of experience under her belt and was an expert at infiltration and hiding from the enemy, Rin was a new genin barely out of the academy and on her very first mission. But she had a point, going out alone was extremely dangerous and in any other circumstance he wouldn't have allowed Yugao to go either.

"Very well, don't stray too far and do not engage them no matter what. Get back here as quickly and as safely as you can." Hizashi orders.

"Will do." Yugao says with a nod before turning to her student. "You ready kid?"

"Yes sensei."

"Alright, we'll catch up to you guys soon." Yugao says and she and Rin take off.

"So what's the plan?" Quinn asks as they move farther from Hizashi and the others and closer to the enemy.

"Laying a false trail is tricky. If you're too obvious with it they'll know it's a trap, but if you make it too hard to find then you're just wasting your time. The key is to make the enemy work for it, that's true of anything by the way. Your enemy is more likely to believe a lie, follow a false trail, accept bad Intel if they have to work to obtain it. As for laying a false trail, the best way to start is to move along like you don't want to be found and then make a mistake. Disturb a branch, leave a single foot print, something like that, something that will catch their attention. Then it's just a lather rinse repeat thing to see how many trails you can leave before the enemy gets too close to you for you to escape."

"Okay, what do you need me to do?" Quinn asks, glad to be out here working rather than resting and hiding. Resting meant she had time to think and that wasn't something she was eager to do right now.

"For now just stick close and follow my lead. Keep an eye on Hizashi and the others and let me know if anyone gets too close to them, and keep watch on the enemy as best you can as well. Also, from here on out communication is silent, so sign language only."

 _"Yes sensei."_ Quinn signs.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"I never expected the Raikage to bring him." Gi says quietly.

"It changes nothing." Eiji says just as quietly, the two of them waiting outside the command tent with the other jōnin commanders, awaiting the arrival of the Raikage.

Gi glares out of the corner of his eye at Eiji, "It changes everything, Yugito is the stronger ninja but B is the more powerful jinchūriki-"

"Exactly," Eiji interrupts, "Destruction is what matters most, it was why I request Yugito in the first place. I wanted a jinchūriki here and I knew that A would never send his brother."

"Yet you sent her off on some errand of yours, if the power of her beast was so vital then why did you send her away?"

"I had my reasons," Eiji says stiffly, taking a moment to imagine the torment he was going to put the Yamanaka girl through once Yugito recovered her. "But it doesn't matter, fate has smiled upon us and sent us a replacement monster. So wipe that scowl off of your face, we proceed as planned. Assuming you prepared everything correctly that is?"

"I've done my job." Gi snarls, "You just make sure that you don't fail, otherwise our lives won't be worth a single ryo."

"Fail?" Eiji asks, sounding amused, "I've been waiting for this moment for over a decade. Now silence, the Raikage approaches." Eiji then steps forward and bows, "Lord Raikage, we are honored to receive you."

The Raikage is striding towards them purposefully, followed closely by the jōnin Samui and her team as well as the jinchūriki, Killer B. Fate had smiled on Eiji indeed, with the other jinchūriki here he didn't have to adjust his plans for Yugito's absence. In just a few more hours his vengeance would be complete.

"You and I will have words later, particularly concerning your future as a shinobi, for now that must wait." A says barely sparing Eiji a glance before addressing the assembled jōnin. "I want an update on the situation immediately."

Eiji along with the other jōnin bow in deference before following A inside the tent. A sinister smile creeps onto Eiji's face, _'Soon you arrogant bastard, soon you will pay dearly.'_

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

It didn't take them long to fill him in on what the situation was and it seemed that every second he was out here was determined to piss A off even more than the last. When the plan was first presented to him by Eiji on how to wipe out Konoha's entire spy ring in their village, after careful deliberation he found it to be a sound plan. Allow the spy to escape and use her to trace who the enemies within their village were as well as what the weakest points in their security were.

Despite reservations due to the actions of his older brother, he allowed Eiji to run this operation rather than another shinobi. Eiji himself had worked hard to build himself up after the disgraceful actions of his brother and had served loyally and competently for the past decade. He had discovered the spy so A felt that the man had a point when he argued that he should be the one to capture them. And initially it had worked, in escaping the spy had been forced to out three of her agents to escape. He was sure that there were more of course, but given time he was confident his shinobi could find them. And not only did they out the spy and part of her ring but they located some of the routes through their territory that the spy ring used. Everything had worked according to Eiji's plan until the fool had attempted to have the spy captured.

He wasn't sure where they had screwed up he only knew that it had been colossal. He was eager to hear from Yugito, who he had sent on Eiji's request, and what her thoughts on the situation were. Not wanting to be overheard he had decided to allow Eiji to fill her in on the details, instead only telling her that she was to report to Lord Eiji at the border for defense drills. But now she was missing as well, sent to help in the locating and capture of the spy, according to Eiji. Though from some of the grumblings of his jōnin this decision to send her was too little too late.

A knew that Eiji was up to something but he couldn't figure out what. The man had acted so boldly and efficiently all the way up until his bungling of this thoughtless invasion. They were now coming to the part where Lord Eiji was informing him of how the negotiations with the Leaf shinobi were going. To his massive headache the Ino-Shika-Chou trio seemed to be the ones taking the lead for Konoha. All three men were incredibly intelligent and clever strategists and you never quite knew what was going on in their minds and that was just them individually. When working together, then even he wouldn't dare to underestimate them. With those three involved he could almost forgive Eiji's incompetence… almost.

"What is Shikaku Nara's current stance?" A asks.

"What you imagine it would be in this situation. That we leave their lands immediately, that we are here illegally, that we have no proof of the existence of a spy." Eiji responds.

"And what demands and terms have you offered." A asks.

"That they secede East Castle to us as well as the surrounding territory, disarm their borders by a yet to be determined number of shinobi over the next few years, and finally that they pay us reparations for the damage caused by their spy."

"They'll never agree to all of that, and certainly not without us having recovered the spy." Samui says, looking to the Raikage. "East Castle is too valuable a fortification and they are no more likely to disarm their border than we are. Reparations are a possible concession but only if we recover the spy."

"Agreed." A says, nodding his head.

"Yo Bro, why don't we just take that castle fo sho! We can get the drop on them as we bring the thunder, and we can save our home from this massive blunder!" B suggests, ready for action.

"Lord B, that would be a mistake. A fight at this point would cost too many lives, the Leaf-nin are too entrenched. While we are likely to obtain victory the cost would be terrible." Samui responds, saving A the trouble of having to.

"Lord Raikage, I admit my actions here have… not been the wisest. I acted too boldly and then too cautiously, this is my mistake, allow me to make up for it and continue the negotiations with the Leaf shinobi. I am confident I can turn this situation around-"

"No." A interrupts, "You've had your chance, I will handle this myself."

Eiji bows his head in deference. "Of course Lord Raikage, by your command. I feel I should inform you, our delegation is expected within the next two hours. If you would please allow it, at least let me accompany you, I was able to observe the moods and personalities of Shikaku Nara, Inoichi Yamanaka, and Takeko Nakano for more than a few hours yesterday. I believe I can still offer valuable insight."

A nods his head in agreement. While he honestly didn't want the other man involved anymore, he was correct in that his insight into the enemy leaders' minds would be valuable, too valuable to toss aside at this critical juncture. "Fine. You'll accompany me along with Samui and B. But I warn you to watch yourself while you are there."

"Of course Lord Raikage. Shall we make our way to East Castle?"

"Cousin, please, allow me to speak." Gi says, speaking up before anyone else could.

A looks to his cousin and nods his head, giving permission.

"While it is one thing to allow Lord Eiji and Yugito Nii to go into an enemy fortress, it is another thing entirely to allow the Raikage and his brother to go. It's foolish to trust that the Leaf vermin will keep their word and allow you safe passage. The Raikage and his brother, who is also the eight tails, that is an exceptionally valuable target for them to just pass up."

"I ain't afraid of those leaf chumps, they try anything with me and they'll walk away with lumps, fool, ya fool!" B shouts, standing up, ready for a fight.

"Sit down B." A orders. "What did you have in mind cousin?" Gi was smart, he and the other man had grown up together and he trusted his judgement. It was why he had allowed the other man to help train B and Yugito, the two jinchūriki.

"Just this, instead of meeting on their home turf, meet in a neutral location of our designation. In addition, allow me to accompany you instead of B, keep him here where he is safe and surrounded by fellow Kumo shinobi. It will just be you, myself, Eiji and a couple of body guards meeting with the Konoha delegates. We can forgo all the pomp and circumstance of a formal setting and get down to the brass tacks of it all and maybe get some real results."

"Oh hell no! I ain't gonna sit this one out!"

"Quiet B!" A snaps, before speaking to Gi. "I assume you have a location in mind?"

"Yes, there is a small valley, just a few miles out. Secluded and open. No chance for an ambush or any tricks from the Leaf Village. If the Leaf-nin are serious about negotiating they'll meet us there, make it a condition, otherwise we fight."

"I'm aware of the area Lord Gi is referring to. He is correct, it is an ideal place to do this if you agree to his plan." Eiji muses.

"Very well."

"Bro!"

"Enough! The plan is sound. B, you will stay here with Samui's team. Samui, I still wish for you to accompany me. Eiji, send word to the Leaf shinobi informing them of my presence and my demands. Inform Shikaku Nara that he is to be at the location in one hour, and that he may have two body guards accompany him if he wishes, anymore and I'll view it as an act of aggression. If he shows up at the location and meets those condition I will negotiate with him, otherwise its war. While I am away the rest of you are to prepare our forces. However, I am giving you strict orders to not initiate combat with the enemy. Should they attack then show them the might of the storm, otherwise leave them be."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Nami lets out a sigh of relief as Hana helps her to lay down, placing a pack under her head to act as a pillow, the strain in her side finally lessening. She had put up a tough act because she didn't want to slow the rescue team down, but the truth was she was barely hanging on and every step she took was painful and exhausting.

"Here, have some water." Hana says, holding a canteen up to her lips.

Nami reaches up and tilts the container and allows the refreshing, cool liquid to pass her lips. "Thanks- ahh!" She winces as she shifts and a sharp pain shoots through her.

"Let me have another look at that." Hana says lifting Nami's shirt and exposing the injured area. The skin was restored but the entire area was one large, angry, black and purple welt that throbbed constantly. And any time she took anything more than a shallow breath it was like she was being stabbed all over again.

Hana reaches towards it and gently runs a finger along it, and Nami winces, clenching her teeth to keep from screaming. When Hana carefully presses against the wound it's too much for Nami and she cries out in pain.

"Hizashi, can I borrow your Byakugan for a moment?" Hana asks.

"Of course." Hizashi says, moving from the entrance of the cave they were hiding in, and kneeling down at their side.

"Alright, look at her ribs and the muscle there and tell me what you see."

Hizashi's Byakugan activates and he stares at her side for a moment, before deactivating his dōjutsu. "There's a cut in the ribs themselves as well as small fractures and it seems like some of the muscle has been severed from the bone."

"Damn, I was afraid of this. We can't keep this pace up, hell she shouldn't be walking at all, it will kill her." Hana says.

"Can you do anything for her?" Hizashi asks.

Hana shakes her head, "This is so far beyond my skills, she needs a properly and fully trained Iryō-nin. I'm a medic, I can stop bleeding and bind wounds well enough, but this requires major surgery."

"So what do we do? I don't want to be a burden." Nami says.

"You're not a burden, you're the mission." Hizashi says with a smile, "We'll figure this out, don't worry."

"She can't walk anymore and if one of us tries to carry her on our backs, the jarring motion is likely to cause even more damage… maybe a stretcher, if we move carefully enough that might work." Hana says, looking up at Hizashi. "But unless you have a couple of wooden poles in your pack I don't know if that's a viable option or not."

"Very well, I will venture out and see if I can find something that will work-" Hizashi however is interrupted by the rumbling growls of the Haimaru brothers. A second after they start growling, Hana is looking up at the entrance to the cave, her own nose having caught the scent just a second after her hounds.

Hizashi straightens up and activates his Byakugan and steps in front of his fellow Leaf shinobi. Hana stands as well, channeling her chakra through her body, causing her senses to sharpen along with her canines and turning her nails into claws. The Haimaru brothers step in front of her, fur bristled, growling as they get ready to annihilate the threat to their alpha.

"It appears the false trail was a failure. They've found us." Hizashi speaks calmly as three Kumo shinobi drop down in front of the cave entrance.

 **s**

 **xXx-Author's Note-xXx**

 **s**

 **Hey everyone, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Things are finally coming to a head with Eiji and his plan. In addition Hizashi, Hana, and Nami have now been found by three Kumo shinobi while Yugao and Quinn/Rin are separated from them. So things are definitely about to go down.**

 **In addition, if any of you are interested in what is happening on the Glee side of things, I am putting up a one shot story called "From the Ashes". It covers a little bit of what's happened to some of the Glee characters since Quinn died. If that's something you might be interested in reading it's there, but it's not currently necessary for this story right now. They will eventually play a bigger role but we are a long ways off from that.**

 **Any who, I hope you all liked this chapter and I will do my best to update it as soon as I can. Schools about to start again and I have classes starting on Monday so that will unfortunately cut into my writing time, but I will try my best to update quickly.**


	34. Chapter 33

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto or any of their characters. Please forgive any grammar and spelling errors, I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 33-xXx**

 **s**

As a ninja you have to get used to the idea of uncertainty. You come to accept that giving your trust to anyone may likely mean your death. You can plan for it, anticipate every imaginable contingency. You can gather intel from as many and as varied sources as you can. You can trust your instincts or council. But eventually, no matter what you learn, no matter how you feel, eventually you have to act.

You didn't have to like it, but you had to accept it, and that was what Shikaku Nara was feeling right now as he and his team followed Eiji to meet the Raikage. Everything about this screamed trap to Shikaku but in the end it didn't matter, if there was a chance to avoid a war, a war that his son and the other children of the village would be forced to fight, then the chance of it being a trap was something that he had to risk.

 _"The Raikage wants to meet where, exactly?" Shikaku asks. The Leaf command were all gathered in the war room of East Castle, while Lord Eiji delivered a message to them from the Raikage._

 _Eiji smiles, "There's a small valley, a few miles northwest of here. It's a neutral location-"_

 _"Neutral my ass, that is deep inside your territory!" Takeko growls. "Lord Nara you can't seriously be considering this!?"_

 _"She does have a point." Inoichi agrees, but he doesn't seem as outright opposed to the idea of going as Takeko was._

 _"This is a non-negotiable demand of the Raikage. If you wish to negotiate and avert a war then you will meet him there to discuss it." Eiji says._

 _"He has a point as well." Shikaku says dryly._

 _Inoichi inclines his head in acknowledgement, slightly amused by and used to his friend's rather dry sense of humor. Takeko didn't look amused at all._

 _"And with all due respect, you seemed to have no problem when it was our side that was forced to come into your territory on a leap of faith." Eiji says._

 _"Our side doesn't have a history of treachery!" Takeko snarls._

 _"Yet your side is now the one accused of espionage." Eiji says, glaring right back._

 _"Which you still have no evidence to support." Inoichi reminds him._

 _A small smirk pulls at Eiji's lips, "As far as you know, but that is not for me to say any more on. You will either meet the Raikage's demands or you will prepare for war." Eiji then makes a show of looking around the room at the assembled Leaf commanders. "Are you all prepared for war, are you a bunch of cowards who will hide behind these walls in fear or will you negotiate with our Raikage in good faith. I note that Lord A came personally to handle this situation, the Raikage is committed, yet there is no sign of the Hokage. Perhaps you aren't as committed to peace as you Leaf shinobi like to pretend?"_

 _Shikaku raises his hand to silence the angry grumblings that had begun. "We are committed to peace. I will go to the meeting."_

 _"Lord Raikage has also told me to inform you that you are allowed two bodyguards if you wish. Though you have mine and his personal guarantee that no harm will befall you."_

 _"How generous." Takeko sneers. "Lord Nara, peace is of course preferable, but this smells rotten. Believe me sir, there is not a single warrior or shinobi here who is not willing to fight and die."_

 _Shikaku gives her a gentle smile, "I know that, the bravery and skill of our warriors is not in question. I have the upmost faith in them, but the only way to be worthy of that bravery is to do everything within my power to make sure that their skills are not needed. I've decided, I will go and speak with the Raikage face to face."_

 _"Then please, allow me to accompany you as one of your bodyguards." Takeko says reaching for her Naginata. "No one knows this territory like I do, nor the Kumo shinobi, you'll need me."_

 _Shikaku nods his head, "Agreed, Inoichi if you're willing I would like you to come as well. We'll leave Chouza here in command of our forces and-"_

 _"Wait! Lord Nara, I know I'm only a chūnin but please allow me to speak." Yuko Nakano says stepping forward and then dropping to a knee in a bow._

 _"Yuko this is not the time or place-"Takeko says firmly, but she stops when Shikaku raises a hand to stop her._

 _"Yuko is it? Takeko's sister correct, you are the one who lead us through the tower when we first arrived and have been running messages for us since then." Shikaku says._

 _"Yes Lord Nara."_

 _"Speak your mind."_

 _"Sir… I… forgive me for speaking out of turn but it is a mistake to take my sister and leave Lord Akimichi in charge."_

 _"Oh?"_

 _"Yes sir. Lord Akimichi is an incredible shinobi and he has done much these past few days to shore up our defenses but…"_

 _"But what? Don't be nervous, speak your mind."_

 _"But he is not my sister." Yuko says, glaring up at him, almost defiant. "My sister has guarded these lands for years now, the soldiers and shinobi stationed here trust her more than anyone. And my sister knows this castle and how to defend it better than anyone. Lord Akimichi, as I said, is a great shinobi, but he isn't her and he won't be the commanding presence that our side will need if it comes to a fight. We are all loyal servants of the Land of Fire and will give our lives if it is necessary but I do not exaggerate when I say the men and women stationed here would follow my sister straight into hell and not even flinch!"_

 _"Yuko…" Takeko says softly, touched by her sister's words._

 _"She wants to accompany you because she blames herself for this situation. She thinks that there is something she should have seen but missed, or done differently that could have prevented this but she's wrong. This has been building for a long time and she did the best she could in an impossible situation. She wants to go to make up for this because she feels it's her fault and it isn't. You want her experience and I understand that, but she knows, I know, you know, and everyone here know that the best place for her, where she can do the most good, is here."_

 _"What would you suggest instead?" Shikaku asks, knowing what she would probably suggest and already weighing the pros and cons of it._

 _"Take Lord Akimichi, go as the full force of the Ino-Shika-Chou trio. With the three of you there it will show the Raikage that you are willing to negotiate or willing to fight. Send a message that we're strong, your reputation is well known throughout the lands and let him consider the possibility of having to face you as he considers his negotiations. This will present our side with the strongest hand we can get while also leaving ourselves with the best possible defense."_

It was a good idea and one he had initially discarded because despite Takeko's greater experience, Chouza's jutsu made him ideal for dealing with multiple enemies. An army that outnumbered yours was easier to fight if you had a giant on your side. But Yuko had made an important point as well, negotiating as the Ino-Shika-Chou trio presented a powerful figure while still meeting the Raikage's conditions. But it was iffy as well because Takeko's presence and experience in dealing with Kumo shinobi would be equally as valuable.

The one thing he hadn't considered to his embarrassment, and what made him change his mind about bringing Chouza instead of her, was the affect Takeko's presence would have on their side's morale. He and his team were obviously a welcomed sight when they had arrived, but Yuko was correct, Takeko had years of experience working alongside the people stationed at the castle and he believed Yuko when she said that the people there would follow Takeko into hell. Numbers mattered in a war and they were outnumbered, but equally important in his view was the will to fight.

So he called Chouza to his side, left Takeko and the other commanders with strict instruction not to engage only defend, and then he set out with his team to what was quite likely a Lightning trap. The next few hours would be critical, success meant a continuation of peace. While failure would be… failure would be the spark that could ignite into another shinobi world war. For his village, for those under his command, for his friends and family... for his son, Shikaku knew he had to succeed. Peace had to be secured.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

"Sensei! If we don't hurry they'll beat us there!" Quinn calls out.

"Dammit… alright, forgo stealth, we need to intercept them before they reach the others."

Their initial attempts to leave a false trail had been successful. The larger group of six Kumo shinobi had re-split into two. They were about to lay the groundwork to try and split one of the groups up again when the group further from them began to move towards their teams position. They dropped what they were doing to rush to their team's aid when the other team began to move in that direction as well.

Six Kumo shinobi versus two was not good odds, no matter how strong Hizashi and Hana were and even with the backup of Hana's nin-ken. Not to mention the difficulties that arose while fighting when you were protecting someone, let alone someone as injured as Nami was. So their best bet in this situation was to intercept the backup Kumo team that was on their way, take them out, and hope that Hizashi and Hana could hold their opponents off until they took care of the other team and could arrive to help them.

It wasn't ideal. Three on two still put the odds against them, but it was better than six on four, especially when the four were restricted by the necessity of protecting an injured person. Quinn knew better than anyone that trying to fight an opponent while handicapped like that was nearly impossible. At least this way, she and Yugao didn't have to hold back and once they won, then they could join the others and outnumber their enemy four to three.

Quinn and Yugao could both sense the enemies' presence as they got closer and closer, eventually running parallel to them, and with a burst of chakra they pull ahead. They then switch to an intercept course, where Yugao finally comes to a stop in the middle of a field surrounded by large boulders.

"They're about thirty seconds out, we'll make our stand here. Stay calm, stay smart, and remember your training." Yugao says as she draws her sword.

"Yes sensei." Quinn says firmly, belying the anxiety and fear she was experiencing. This was a fight, a real fight with fully trained enemy shinobi and if she failed then not only would she die, but her sensei and teammates would die as well. Nami would then be captured, which would lead to a war, her father would be in even greater danger, and that girl's death would truly be meaningless. She had to fight, she had kill, and she had to win. There was no other choice, too much was riding on her success here and now.

"They're here." Yugao says quietly, and not even a second later three Kumo shinobi land across the field in front of them, weapons drawn and ready for a fight. In the distance Quinn can sense Hizashi and Hana begin to engage the enemy.

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"It looks like you were correct Raiko, these Leaf scum were hiding out in these nearby caves." The Kumo shinobi on the left says.

The one identified as Raiko scoffs, "Of course, we utilize them so it stands to reason that if they became aware of them they would use them too, and this was the nearest one. Itsu, inform Bravo Team that we've found them."

The shinobi on the left nods his head and reaches up to the radio collar around his neck.

Hizashi's eyes harden and guilt fills him, he had been the one to lead them to this cave, this was his fault.

"Check it out, a Hyūga and if those dogs are any indication an Inuzuka as well." The Kumo shinobi on the right says.

Raiko nods his head, "Our orders are to capture the spy, the rest of them are just an obstacle. We'll give them one chance to surrender or we kill them." Raiko says to his two teammates before addressing them. "You hear that, this is your one chance, surrender or die."

Hizashi doesn't say anything, instead getting into his gentle fist fighting stance. Hana meanwhile slowly reaches inside her equipment pouch.

"Figures, you Konoha shinobi never did know when to back down from a fight. Itsui, Moi, you two take the girl, the Hyūga is mine."

Both men nod in the affirmative, drawing their weapons, while Raiko does a series of quick hand signs and in a puff of smoke two metal tonfas appear in each hand.

"Hana, above all else Nami must be protected, if not then-"

"I understand, and we won't let it come to that." Hana says fiercely, they'd come too far to have it end like that. "We just need to hold them off until Yugao and Rin arrive."

"I can see them from here, it looks like they've got their hands full, I don't know that they'll arrive in time to be of any help so don't hold back." Hizashi says.

Hana gives a cocky little smirk and scoffs, "I'll be fine, just try to keep up old man."

Hizashi chuckles, grateful for his teammate's attempt at levity, her confidence. "Then let's begin." Hizashi says, signaling for Hana to act. She quickly grabs two smoke pellets inside her equipment pouch and throws them at the ground obscuring them in a thick grey smoke. Hizashi's Byakugan piercing it easily and it buying Hana enough time to perform the hand seals for her jutsu.

" **Inuzuka Secret Technique: Beast Mimicry!** " Hana calls out, chakra surging through her body, making subtle changes to it that made her more beast-like. Enhancing her senses, her strength and agility, her speed, sharpening her nails into claws and her canine teeth into fangs, and even altering the way her body was capable of moving. Allowing her to run on all fours like her canine companions.

The Kumo ninja who had been on the right steps forward and his hands fly into the seals necessary for his own technique. " **Wind Style: Air Blast Jutsu!** " he calls out, charging the air around him with chakra and sending it blasting into the cave, dispersing the smoke, but the delay in dispersing the smoke bombs had given Hana the time she needed to activate her second technique.

" **Inuzuka Secret Technique: Fang Rotating Fang!** " Hana then takes a leap forward almost like she's about to do a summersault, only instead her body begins to rotate with incredible speed and power, her body taking the form of a giant buzz saw like object that begins to rush towards the enemy. Her hounds follow suit as well, the four of them rushing to either crush their enemies or at least move them away from the cave. She and the Haimaru brothers successfully force the two shinobi Itsui and Moi to back away, but Raiko dashes around and past her rushing towards Hizashi.

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Once they are clear of the cave and two of the enemy shinobi had been forced out she and her hounds quickly pull out of the technique. The goal was not to actually hit the enemy, though a strike would have been nice, but to move them away from the confines of the cave. Her clan's techniques were powerful and destructive and did better out in the open than in the confines of a small area. If she hadn't moved them away then she was just as likely to hit Hizashi and Nami with her jutsu as she was the enemy.

But now that space was no longer an issue she and her pack wouldn't have to hold back. "Alright boys, let's do this right." Hana growls as she and the Haimaru brothers move to surround the two Kumo-nin. As she's moving, her hands already forming the seals necessary for her next technique, " **Inuzuka Secret Art: Beast Mimicry!** " in a puff of smoke that briefly obscures the enemies vision, the three hounds become identical copies of their mistress.

 _'Better end this as quickly as possible. I have numbers on my side, but if Rin was correct then they're both jōnin and I'm still only a chūnin.'_ Hana thinks to herself as she and her nin-ken slowly begin to circle the enemy shinobi, watching, waiting for an opening to strike. The two Kumo shinobi look as calm as can be though, standing back to back. Watching the four figures move around them intently, but without any anxiety or fear.

With a snarl, Ni rushes forward and Hana and the others follow suit. The four of them reach the enemy almost simultaneously, ready to use their claws to end this quickly. But in a blur of motion Itsui's hands begin to move, forming hand signs at an incredible speed. " **Lightning Style: Static Barrier Jutsu!** " The other Kumo shinobi Moi, pulls out a Kunai and stabs it into the ground maintaining his grip, while a huge static burst of electricity surges from Itsui's body, creating a dome of electricity around them.

Hana and the Haimaru brothers are thrown violently back, their bodies being zapped with electricity. Hana, Ichi, and San manage to right themselves in time to land safely as they fly through the air, but Ni caught the worst of it and slams into a nearby rock, cracking it with the force with which he hits. Ni lets out a sharp yelp, the force of the blow shocking him out of his transformation. He briefly tries to stand but doing so hurts too much and so he slumps back to the ground.

Itsui scoffs, "Is that the best you can do?"

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Hizashi deftly avoids each of Raiko's furious strikes with his metal tonfas, his Byakugan allowing him to see the obvious strategy of the enemy, who was channeling Lightning Chakra into his weapons. It was quite clever really, any strike would not only be incredibly powerful, but it would have the added effect of electrocuting any opponent struck, and it also made most shinobi weapons useless against him. Block one of his tonfas with your body or any metal weapon and you created a path for the lightning chakra to strike you for him. Of the three enemy he and Hana now faced, his opponent was the best equipped to fight someone like him. Hizashi could not block him with either his hands or a weapon without taking damage, he could only avoid his enemy's strikes.

Fortunately for Hizashi, the enemy's admittedly clever strategy was all he had going for him. The Kumo shinobi Raiko was fast, but Hizashi was faster. His technique was good as well, exactly what Hizashi would expect from a jōnin, but it still wasn't good enough to defeat his own Taijutsu and so every blow missed him. For Hizashi it was just a matter of waiting. Finding the right opportunity to strike.

The Gentle Fist was the most dangerous and deadly fighting style in the Hidden Leaf Village. This wasn't arrogance on his part, or overconfidence, or even clan pride, it was simple fact. There was a very simple reason that the Hyūga clan trained almost exclusively with the Gentle Fist style, and it wasn't because of tradition, or because they were too stubborn to adapt. The simple fact of the matter was, they didn't need to change.

An enemy who was familiar with the gentle fist style had almost no advantage over an enemy who didn't. Once an opponent was struck by a practitioner of the Gentle Fist, even just glancing blow, the fight was pretty much over. One tap from him could cause muscles to spasm, internal bleeding, chakra coil damage, and a whole host of other problems. In a sense, there was no such thing as a glancing blow from the Gentle Fist.

That was why the Gentle Fist was so dangerous, every strike was potentially deadly. It didn't matter if the enemy had a working knowledge of the style and its techniques, which this opponent obviously did. Even if he knew every move that Hizashi was going to throw at him, it didn't matter, because he had to be absolutely perfect for the duration of the fight. One mistake, one moment where he misread Hizashi's movement, or he wasn't fast enough, and the fight would be over and this Raiko knew it too.

He was attacking furiously, a constant barrage of blows that didn't leave Hizashi any time to counter attack. But this was coming at a price, maintaining an attack like that was exhausting, but he had no choice. Raiko's jutsu and fighting style were clever, but they committed him to a close combat fight, which with him was a death sentence. His attacks were using up much more chakra and stamina than Hizashi's Byakugan and just dodging were, and Hizashi could tell that they were taking their toll on him.

Of course with the Lightning Chakra inside those metal tonfas, Hizashi was in a similar predicament as his enemy. He had no idea just how powerful a shock those things would deliver on even just a touch, though judging by the amount of chakra being pumped into them he didn't imagine it would be pleasant. He had obviously faced a Hyūga in combat before, but there was one advantage that Hizashi had over the enemy, despite both of them being in a situation where they couldn't be struck even once.

Hizashi trained in this kind of situation all of the time, every spar with another member of his clan was a fight just like this, where if you weren't perfect, if you made even the slightest miscalculation, you went down. Hizashi was used to fighting an enemy up close who could defeat him with only a single strike. He was used to being in a fight where he would lose if he got hit even once, this man wasn't. He had enough experience fighting Hyūga to know that he couldn't let Hizashi get a hit in, but he didn't know enough to pace himself.

Unfortunately, time was not a luxury that Hizashi had. Waiting for his opponent to wear himself out was the best way to win this fight, but it wasn't the path he wanted to take. Hana was in deep trouble, she was exceptionally skilled and had the superior numbers, but when it came down to it, her opponents were stronger. Already one of her nin-ken had been taken out of the fight and he could see that she had taken a couple of hard hits herself. If he could just beat this guy quickly and get to her, his presence would switch the fight to Hana's favor.

Hana was giving it everything that she had and the situation wasn't hopeless, but the odds were not in her favor and she was taking a beating. He needed to defeat this enemy quickly if he wanted to be of any use to her, but his enemy's style was such that he couldn't retaliate just yet. It would be no trouble to move past him and reach Hana, but that would leave Nami completely defenseless. In a situation like this his Byakugan was as much a blessing as it was a curse. While it gave him unparalleled vision and insight into his opponent, it also forced him to watch helplessly as his team fought for their lives.

Hana, Yugao, Rin, they were all fighting, giving everything that they had to defeat their enemies and right now all he could do was watch. He was able to see them with perfect clarity, and it was killing him that he couldn't join them. But he had his own battle to attend to, one that needed his full attention, he could win but he couldn't lose focus. He had to wait, bide his time, find the opening and then seize it. And hope that moment wasn't too long in coming and that he would still be able to help his team.

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 **xXx-Authror's Note-xXx**

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 **Oh man, why did I have to write a story where people fight? Seriously! Writing combat is hard! I can see what is happening so clearly in my mind and it looks so cool, but when I try to put it to paper it just doesn't want to come out right. Hopefully I get better but please bear with me. And please forgive the long wait between updates, I am bombarded with school and work right now so I don't have nearly as much time to write as I would like. Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter and I will update as soon as I can. Thanks for reading :)**


	35. Chapter 34

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto. Please forgive any spelling and grammar errors, I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 34-xXx**

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The sky was overcast as the Raikage stood in the center of the small valley, his two bodyguards, Samui and Gi, standing just behind him. All three of them waiting for Eiji to arrive with the Konoha delegation. With every passing second the tension rose, finally the silence is broken by Samui.

"Here they come." Samui says calmly, instinctively taking a single step forward to place herself between the Raikage and the Konoha shinobi being led by Eiji. She was young and a lot of people had been annoyed at how quickly Samui's star had risen, but there was no one in the village that he trusted more. Through her skill and loyalty, she had earned his everlasting respect.

"This is it cousin, here, the future of the Hidden Cloud Village will be decided." Gi says, his voice low and steady.

"Konoha will accept my terms, they can no more afford a war than we can." A says confidently. The leaf village tended to be self-righteous pricks in his opinion, but he had to give them credit where it was due, they were usually willing to negotiate where others wouldn't. A lot had changed since he had taken the mantle of Raikage, while there were some who grumbled that he was too hesitant, too forgiving, those with half a brain knew that they were stronger than ever and it was because he didn't send his shinobi to die for every slight to their honor.

He had used these years to help build and repair their infrastructure. The war with Konoha had been devastating but his people had performed above and beyond what anyone could ask of them. They rebuilt their home and made it better than ever, he would not throw away their blood, sweat, and tears on a needless war. They deserved better than that, they deserved a leader who would not sacrifice them needlessly. The negotiations would not fail.

"Some might say that this is the opportune moment to strike. Remove the massive threat of Shikaku Nara here and now. Strike them down with the fury of the storm… it's what your father would do." Gi says conversationally, watching A out of the corner of his eye.

"And he would have been wrong. Konoha will answer for its crimes against us but I will not fight a needless war."

"It is not needless to defend our home-" Gi growls.

"Enough." Samui interrupts, cutting Gi off from speaking further. "Lord A has made his decision and you will respect it."

Gi glares at her and there is a flash of killing intent that causes A to shift slightly to intervene if necessary, while Samui seemingly ignores him completely, as calm as a mid-summers day. It was another reason he held her in such high regard, she never lost her cool and never let anything ruffle her feathers. If he didn't know her so well he would assume she was made of ice.

But A didn't need to worry as quickly as the anger was there it was gone and Gi gives him a small bow. "Forgive me cousin, you know I support you one hundred percent."

A nods his head in acknowledgement before addressing the arriving Leaf shinobi. "Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and Akimichi Chouza, your names are well known to me." He doesn't address or acknowledge Eiji who moves to stand just behind and to the side of Samui.

"Lord Raikage, we are honored by your presence." Shikaku says with a bow, flanked by his teammates.

Eiji and Gi share a quick look, the time was almost here to enact Eiji's plan. A, Samui, and the Konoha nin were hyper focused, neither side willing to trust the other not to betray them. Any abrupt action would catch their attention immediately, which meant in order for them to act, Eiji and Gi needed an outside source to draw their attention and provide them the opening that they needed. Luckily for them, that was where the spy came in and any second now they would make their move.

A and Shikaku stared at each other, taking stock of the other, trying to gain the measure of the man with whom they would be negotiating the future of their villages with. However, before they can start to speak, their attention, along with Samui's, Inoichi's, and Chouza's are drawn away from each other back towards the direction of the castle as a spike of chakra use and the faint sounds of explosions can be heard.

"What the?" Inoichi says, sensing the two forces engaging in combat, chakra flaring as jutsu are activated in the distance.

Eiji moves swiftly, drawing his blade and stabbing it through Samui's back and out through her stomach. Samui lets out a sharp gasp of pain as the blade moves through her, before falling to the ground as he pulls the blade back out.

"Eiji!" A roars enraged as he watches his friend and subordinate fall to the ground, blood starting to pool around her. He gathers his chakra into his arms, ready to remove the traitors head with his infamous lariat. However Eiji ignores him and moves to place himself so that he could face the stunned Konoha Nin. Simultaneously, before A could attack Eiji, he finds himself being tackled and sent flying back by Gi, who rapidly gives pursuit.

A tumbles to a stop and then pushes himself up to a knee and wipes some blood from the corner of his mouth. "Gi, you bastard, what the hell are you doing!?"

"I'm taking back my village. You're weak A, undeserving of the title of Raikage. You are unfit to lead and an embarrassment to your father's legacy."

"Treacherous bastard…" A growls as he pushes himself to his feet and begins to gather his chakra. First he was going tear the heart out of his snake cousin, then he was going to kill Eiji, much quicker than he deserved, and if those Konoha ninja were involved as well, he would wipe them out too.

Lightning begins to crackle and spark around him as he gathers his chakra, "You're dead!" A shouts as he charges Gi at an incredible speed. A is so enraged, so worried about finishing this quickly so he can help Samui that he doesn't notice the smug look of victory that creeps up on Gi's face, who seemed more than ready for him, his hands already flying into a series of complex hand seals.

While all of this is happening in a matter of seconds, Shikaku looks to his teammates as Eiji places himself in a position to engage them. "New mission, protect the Raikage." It seemed this was what Eiji had been playing at all along, and if they wanted any hope of peace the Raikage had to survive. And so without missing a beat, the Ino-Shika-Chou trio spring into action, and rush towards the Raikage who had just been knocked away and was now getting to his feet.

Eiji flings a kunai with an explosive tag towards Chouza who is forced to jump back to avoid it. Inoichi grabs a kunai from his pouch and engages Eiji who is forced to face him head on, using his sword to block Inoichi's attack, but leaving an opening for Shikaku to rush past him and towards Gi and the Raikage.

Shikaku's hands form the seal of the rat and as he's racing towards the Raikage and his opponent, his shadow shoots out ahead of him, racing towards the enemy combatant. At the moment his shadow connects with Gi's shadow, the Raikage has reached him as well, electricity arching off of him as he moves in for the kill. And just as Shikaku thinks this fight is going to be over quickly, he sees that Gi has completed his own technique.

" **Lightning Style: Magnetic Sealing Jutsu!** " Symbols race along the ground from Gi, and the earth beneath himself, Shikaku, and the Raikage begins to shake as four pillars of rock shoot up from the ground. Evenly spaced they surround them, each one about twenty feet apart and has three metal spikes protruding from it facing inwards, and all of them pointing towards the Raikage who was in the dead center. Shikaku cries out in agony as a surge of static electricity blasts through him and his legs give out from under him, his body twisting in agony at the power of the electricity coursing through him.

The Raikage who had been about to attack Gi finds himself slamming into the ground, a small crater created by the force of his fall. Lightning arcs from the Raikage's body and towards the spikes at random intervals, while Gi is violently flung from where he was and outside the range of the four pillars. He slams his hands into the ground, his grip digging out a ditch in the earth as he slows and steadies himself.

As the dust clears, Inoichi and Chouza can only look on as the Raikage and Shikaku are both lying face down on the ground inside the pillars. Eiji gives a confident smirk as he locks eyes with Inoichi, while Gi dusts himself off and moves to engage Chouza. "That worked even better than I had hoped. Gi really outdid himself." Eiji chuckles, his voice slightly amazed before it takes on a malicious edge to it, he was hungry for some pay back against Inoichi because of his earlier insults. "And now for you."

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The spy takes a deep breath as they stand on a rampart and watch Lord Eiji lead the Ino-Shika-Chou trio to the meeting place with the Raikage. With the exception of a couple of easily fixed deviations, everything had worked out the way Lord Eiji had said it would. The Raikage was isolated and soon he would be dead. His death would be blamed on Shikaku and his team, and they would soon be dead as well. At the speed they were traveling it would take Eiji and the Ino-Shika-Chou trio approximately thirty minutes to reach the valley. That meant that in twenty minutes it would be their turn to act.

They had one simple job to do, they needed to get the two forces fighting and Konoha had to be seen as the aggressor. The story sold would be a successful assassination of the Raikage by one of Konoha's most infamous teams, meanwhile a botched assault from Fire nation forces stationed at East Castle would be stopped by the valiant efforts of Lightning's forces. All of it led by a heroic Lord Eiji, who not only stopped Konoha's aggressive and unwarranted attack but he also avenged the Raikage's death by killing those who were responsible for it.

The outrage and grief at the death of the Raikage at Konoha's hand would keep the general populous from asking too many questions or looking into what happened too deeply. And Lord Eiji was politically powerful enough that any opponents that he had would be unable to act against him, and with him being the one who killed the Konoha ninja who killed the Raikage, he all but assured the two Jinchūriki's loyalty to himself.

By the time the elders, ranking shinobi, and Lightning Lord confirmed Lord Eiji's position as the new Raikage, it would be a formality only. And for all of their service to the new Raikage and all of their information on Konoha's defenses in the area they would finally be able to forge their own destiny and live the life they deserved. Honored and respected, without answering to anyone but themselves. It was time to think for themselves, act for themselves. Selflessly serving their country, following orders, being the good soldier, all it had gotten them was forever stuck in an assignment out here in the most dangerous ass end of the Land of Fire.

Only one thing was holding them back. One thing was keeping them here, making the final act of betrayal difficult. And they knew exactly where to begin, what they had to do to sever that final tie to Konoha and the Land of Fire. Only one thing held them back and it had to go before they could ever be free to live the life of their choosing. It was selfish, it was cruel, it was evil, they had no delusions otherwise, but for the first time in their lives they were choosing themselves and it was far too late for them to turn back.

Once twenty minutes had passed the spy made their way off the rampart and into East Castle. Walking the familiar halls that they had come to know better than anyone else. Calmly they make their way to the main war room and slide the door open, stepping inside and closing it softly behind them. The room was completely empty of people except for one other person and themselves.

Takeko Nakano, her big sister and the one final bond that she still had tying her to this life and this place. It was time to end it, time to sever that bond, and do her part in Lord Eiji's plan.

"Yuko?" Takeko says, turning to face her sister a gentle smile on her face. "I'm glad you're here I… I want to thank you."

Yuko shakes her head and smiles, "For what?"

"For speaking up earlier, for standing up for me… I mean… you're right I do blame myself, this is my fault. I could have stopped this, I should have stopped this and now-"

"Hey." Yuko interrupts moving to stand next to her sister. "You did everything you could. Anyone who blames you is a fool and not worth listening to. You held this place when no one else could and no one has any right to ask more of you than what you've already give."

Takeko smiles and bows her head, wiping away the tears before they could truly form and fall. "I love you little sister. I know you resented being stationed here and I'm sorry… I snatched you right out of the academy, you didn't even get to be on a genin team but… I needed you. I had just been given this huge command and I was scared and I needed you. It was selfish and I know that. I've held you back all these years and I am so sorry. When this is all over… I think I'll retire, I think I have given enough, and if you want to go and forge a life for yourself away from me, I won't try and stop you. I've held you back for too long and I am so sorry. You deserve to live the life that you want, not the life that I needed you to." Takeko says, her voice quivering slightly with emotion, guilt overwhelming her at the way she had used her ever loyal sister. Tears begin to fall down her cheek as she can't hold them back any more.

Yuko nods her head, but doesn't say anything.

"I love you Yuko, please know that."

"I do, I know that. And I love you too sister." Yuko says, wiping the tears from her big sister's eyes, she then moves in and pulls her sister into a hug. "And I accept your apology… but I'm afraid it's too little… too late."

"Yuko what are you… uh…" Takeko gasps in pain as Yuko steps away from her, and when she looks down she sees Yuko's hand holding the handle of a blade, that had been slid through an opening in her armor and into her stomach through the side. "Why?" Takeko asks confused and heart broken.

Tears begin to fall from Yuko's eyes as she withdraws the blade and jams it in again. She does this three more times. Takeko lets out a grunt of pain with each stab before her legs begin to give out and Yuko catches her. Holding her closely and cradling her body as they sink to the floor.

"Please don't hate me." Yuko pleads softly, her voice barely above a whisper. "I had to do this, I had to. I've already done too much to stop now. I had to see this through, I'm already a traitor, I already betrayed Konoha to Lord Eiji a long time ago. If I didn't do this then I was dead, I would have been executed."

"Yu… ko…" Takeko chokes out as she begins to choke up blood.

"Please don't hate me." Yuko says again, gently stroking her sister's cheek. "I hated it here, I hated that you needed me, hated that I was stuck, but I never hated you and I never meant to betray you. But I was captured and they were going to torture me, kill me and… and so I did what I had to in order to survive. So I betrayed our people in order to save my own life and by the time I was finished… I was too far gone to ever make it right. It was nothing you did wrong sis, I was the one who gave up Nami Yamata's existence, I was the one who passed along her escape route to Kumo. I helped Lord Eiji plan all of this…"

"Yu… ko…" Takeko gasps out weakly, her eyes fluttering as she begins to fade.

"I don't know if you can ever forgive me and I'll understand if you can't, but if you can, be happy for me. I've made sure that my future is secure, I'll live on. It's selfish I know and… I'm sorry I had to do this to you but… I couldn't stand to live in a world where you and I are enemies. Sleep big sis, you've done enough and your fight is over." Yuko then leans in and places a soft kiss to Takeko's forehead and as Takeko loses consciousness, all she could think was that this was her fault, that she had turned her sister into this, she had failed her sister, and she was the reason their people were going to die… it was her fault.

Yuko takes a moment to cry over her sister body, grieving for the life she had just taken and then she shuts it off. She turns off her emotions, she had a job to do, and the only way her sister's death would have any meaning is if she completed it. Takeko was the only tie she had left to Konoha and now it was severed.

She takes a deep and steadying breath before she cries out as loudly as she can. "Guards! Guards!"

She hears the stomping of feet as shinobi and soldiers alike flood the room, gasping in horror at the sight before them. Yuko Nakano cradling her sister's body, blood gushing from a wound in Takeko's stomach. A bloodied kunai with Kumo markings lay beside them.

"Lady Takeko…" One of the commanders stationed here under Takeko's command stammers, unable to believe his own eyes. Sure that they must be playing some kind of cruel trick on him.

"I found her like this…" Yuko says softly, allowing her voice to sound broken. "They killed her, all of their talk of peace and they killed her… THEY KILLED MY SISTER!" Yuko screams, her body quivering with rage as she gently, almost reverently places her sister's body on the floor, before standing up.

"Kumo's treachery knows no bounds, all of their talks of peace and yet time and time again this is how they act. No more, they must pay for what they did to her!" Yuko shouts, getting furious shouts of approval back.

"Yuko, Lord Nara gave us specific orders not to attack." Another one of the commanders tries to speak up, but his voice is hesitant and uncertain. He wants revenge for Lady Takeko just as much as everyone else here does.

"Do you honestly believe he's still alive?" Yuko scoffs, "This was an obvious ploy, the Ino-Shika-Chou trio are gone and my sister is dead. The greatest defenders of this castle, of this land are now gone. We trusted Kumo to hold the same values of honor and integrity that we do and we were betrayed." Yuko looks around the room, staring into the eyes of each person there. "You must decide, do we let their treachery go unpunished, do we let my sister's murder go unanswered or… or do we take a stand here and now and fight!"

The cries for battle resound around her, Takeko had earned the loyalty of the men and women assembled in this room a million times over and now that same loyalty would be used to destroy them. Any sympathy, any regret that Yuko might have had about what was going to happen had died with her sister. She had chosen her side for better or worse, now all there was to do was see it through until the end.

"Then we go to war… for my sister." Yuko says, her voice full of conviction.

"You heard her!" One of the commanders, Kimura, shouts out taking overall command, "Send word, everyone to their battle stations, we attack immediately!"

"Yes sir!" Choruses throughout the room, and in the next instant everyone is in motion readying for war.

Yuko feels a hand gently clasp her on the shoulder and she sees that it's jōnin Kimura, "We will avenge your sister. You have my word."

"Thank you." Yuko says with a resolute nod of her head.

"I would be honored if you would fight by my side in the coming battle. There was no one in the world that I respected more than your sister."

"Of course." Yuko agrees.

Kimura snaps his fingers calling to chūnin to his side. "You two, take care of Lady Takeko's body, give it all the respect that it is due. We can't allow those treacherous snakes to get a hold of it."

"Wait." Yuko says, stopping the two chūnin.

"What is it Yuko?" Kimura asks.

"Please let me take care of my sister's body. Please."

Kimura looks surprised for a moment but then his features shift into something softer and more understanding. "Of course." He then addresses the two chūnin. "You two, assist lady Yuko in any way that she requires then get to your posts."

"Yes sir." They respond, and with that Kimura leaves.

"What do you need us to do Yuko?" One of the chūnin asks, however she doesn't respond until she is sure that Kimura and everyone else is gone.

"Yuko?" The other chūnin asks gently, grabbing her attention.

"I'm sorry what?" Yuko asks.

The first chūnin places a comforting hand on her shoulder. They had known each other for three years now, under any other circumstance they would be a welcome sight, they would be friends. "What do you need us to do Yuko?"

Yuko smiles warmly at them both, "Of course, first things first…" And quicker than you could blink Yuko has drawn a wakizashi and slit both of the chūnins' throats. They are dead before they hit the ground. "I need you to die."

Yuko then walks to a window and looks down from her position near the top of the tower and she watches as Konoha launches a surprise offensive against the Kumo forces. Her mission had been a success, now all she had to do was wait.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Keep your focus. That was the first rule of combat that Yugao-sensei had pounded into her head. Focus on your enemy, your surroundings, and leave everything else behind. If you could keep your cool and remember your training, then according to Yugao-sensei, nine out of ten times the enemy would defeat themselves.

It sounds so simple when you just say it. Stay focused. But Quinn found she was having a hell of a time doing it. She couldn't get it out of her head, that girl's face. The look of horror as Quinn severed her head from the rest of her body. She could still feel the rain of blood splatter that had rained down on her. Every time her enemy provided her with an opening, and there were a lot of them, she would freeze.

Her training was kicking in just like sensei had said it would, just like Sarutobi-sensei had said, and her father, and every other teacher she had ever had along the way. Those hours and hours of practice and repeating katas over and over again, training with her sensei and sparring. Talking strategy and technique with Sarutobi-sensei and Yugao-sensei, all of it was coming to bear. And yet whenever she would go for the killing blow, she would freeze.

Her enemy was fast, strong, and had perfect technique. He was also an arrogant prick who apparently liked to toy with his opponents. Maybe she was biased, but this guy was an idiot who should never have been made into a jōnin. You never, _never_ , did in three moves what you could do in one. You never toyed with your opponent, ever. The moment you had a killing blow you took it, because if you didn't your enemy would.

This guy had toyed with her, that initial strike, the very beginning of combat he had her and he knew it. He could have killed right then, but he didn't. He had to prove something, had to feed his ego for whatever reason, and he had to not only beat her, but humiliate her. And because of that, because of his ego and his need to fight her, not beat her, but fight her, she could read him now, read him like a children's picture book. With her sensor abilities, she could sense the way his chakra would flair when he was about to attack, and it was all so clear to her. He may as well have been calling out his attacks he was so easy for her to read.

But it didn't matter, she was so fucked up in the head right now that she just couldn't bring herself to kill him. She couldn't have another death on her conscience. He swings his fist towards her head with incredible power and speed, not so much trying to punch her, but actually knock her head off. But she ducks around his attack easily. He was fast, but she could see it coming along with another opening, and another chance for her to end this, to kill him.

Her hand grips her blade, still sheathed in the scabbard on her back. There it was, the opening, the same one she had seen time and time again, she needed to take it. Duck down, draw her blade, thrust up through the rib cage, and sever the aorta. He would be dead before he hit the ground. Quick and easy with virtually no pain, as humane a death as any shinobi had any right to ask for. She starts to unsheathe her blade, her adrenalin is pumping and time seems to be moving in slow motion.

Do it.

Do it.

Do it!

 _'Draw your damn blade and kill him!'_ She screams in her mind, _'End this now!'_

She stops herself, the blade not even moving an inch out of the scabbard, and for a moment she doesn't see the enemy in front of her, she is looking into the terrified and innocent blue eyes of the young girl she had murdered, and a fraction of a second later she is gone and with it the opening. Quinn jumps back, into a backwards hand spring away from her opponent, giving her space to breath, to collect herself. And like an arrogant, stupid, fool, he doesn't pursue.

What was wrong with him, if he didn't stop her, if he didn't kill her and quickly he was going to die? It's what her sensei would do, it's what she had been trained to do, so why wasn't he? Hell, an even more important question, why wasn't she? She could end this fight, she could kill him, so why didn't she? She was a ninja, she had trained and trained for this situation. She had agreed to this, agreed to kill and live in the darkness so that others wouldn't have to. So why, why couldn't she do it? People she loved and cared about were counting on her, so why couldn't she kill this nameless enemy? What was he to her, but someone that was a danger to herself and her sensei and team? She had to kill him, she had to.

"Damn, you're stronger than I gave you credit for." The Kumo shinobi chuckles, though she could see and sense the annoyance rolling off of him.

Quinn doesn't respond. The best way to get under a narcissist's skin was to ignore them, show them that they weren't worth noticing or responding to. And there was no doubt he was a narcissist. She would already be dead if he wasn't.

"You're definitely fast, not many people can claim to have lasted this long against my Taijutsu. Pretty impressive, huh?"

Quinn doesn't say anything, instead she closes her eyes and tries to center herself. Her mind was out of whack, this was her choice, and she couldn't afford mess around. Her father, sensei, and team couldn't afford for her to go off the deep end like she wanted to. She chose this life, she chose to become a ninja, to prepare for ANBU, what the hell did she think she was going to be doing? She needed to get over it, she needed to kill him…

"Hey! I'm talking to you, you little brat!" Her enemy shouts at her, and she could sense his annoyance and anger flare. She could tell, he felt humiliated. What should have been an easy win was turning into a real fight, one where he might not win.

Quinn once more refuses to say anything, instead she slowly draws her blade. There could be no hesitation, no chance to change her mind. When an opening presented itself she needed to take it. She couldn't give herself time to think, she could only react. She had to stay focused.

The Kumo shinobi chuckles, "You are one creepy little girl, you know that? You stand there all quiet and hollow eyed and it is freaking creepy. I mean seriously, how do you get like that? I don't know why you're fighting so hard to stay alive, you're dead on the inside already."

Quinn flinches at that and the cruel smirk that pulls at her enemy's lips tells her that he noticed it too. "Oh yeah, you see it all the time with the few old timers that manage to survive. They do really fucked up shit over the years and it kills them on the inside a little bit each time, so that by the time they reach old age they're just soulless husks who's body's just haven't realized their humanity has long left them…" He chuckles once more, "I can't even imagine the kinds of horrors you must have committed to get that look so young. I wonder, how many lives have you destroyed?"

He had done it, he had found her weak spot, and it was time to exploit it. He had lost everyone he had ever loved in the last war with Konoha, it was time to make one of them suffer even just a little bit of what he had suffered. It was time to hurt one of them the same way they had hurt him.

"Shut up…" Quinn growls, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm sorry little monster, I didn't hear you." The Kumo shinobi laughs.

"Shut up…" Quinn's voice quietly quivers with suppressed rage, a little louder this time, but only just.

"Why, that's what you are. Truth hurts, I mean look at you, you're already dead inside. They already have you doing covert ops in enemy territory and at such a young age. That's not normal. I mean, all shinobi are monsters to some degree or another, but I can't imagine what kind of freak you must be, to be here right now. I mean seriously, you can't tell me that the world won't be better off without a little monster like you."

White hot rage begins to course through her veins, unlike anything she had ever felt before. It was just a flash, but it was inhuman and ancient, and the power behind it that was immeasurable. It was foreign to her, she knew it wasn't her rage, and yet it felt intimately familiar. She wasn't thinking clearly and she knew that was a bad thing, but she didn't care. She wanted to hurt him, his words had hurt her and now she wanted to hurt him. And this flash of rage, whatever it was, wherever it had come from, it felt as if it had supercharged her.

"I SAID SHUT UP!" The young Konoha kunoichi screams, and the Kumo shinobi takes a step back and for a moment he thinks he sees something standing behind the young Konoha kunoichi. An ethereal figure, manifesting itself around her, almost as if it were some kind of chakra cloak, like Lord Bee and Lady Yugito had when they called upon their demons, and then just as quickly as it was there it was gone.

The girl's hands fly into the seal of the tiger, "I AM NOT A MONSTER! **Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!** " The girl spits out a flame towards the ground that rushes towards him, faster than he had ever seen any fire jutsu move before, and even some lightning jutsu. It digs out a ditch in the ground as it carves a path out of the earth towards him.

He barely has time to jump away and avoid being hit directly when the technique detonates, creating a huge explosion. The heat was unreal, he could feel his skin sizzling, popping and cracking from its intensity. The concussive force sent him and debris flying everywhere, the concussive blast slamming into him and shocking his body, and when he finally slams into the ground, he knows that the only reason he isn't in excruciating pain is because his mind hasn't caught up to his body yet.

He needs to move, he needs to get out of here and get back up. His teammates had told him that his fooling around during a fight would come back to bite him in the ass someday, he just never thought it would be in the form of some demon twelve year old girl. However, when he tries to move his legs nothing happens. He tries again, he had to get up and out of here before the dust settled. He needed back up, but still nothing happens. And as the dust begins to clear, he looks down at where his legs should be but all he sees are smoking and charcoaled stumps.

He gasps in horror, and he reaches down towards his leg but instead of seeing both of his hands, he only sees his left hand and a broken mass of flesh that used to be his right hand. His mind was racing and he knew he was in shock, he needed to move, he needed to get out of here. He didn't want to die, he wanted to live! And then she is there.

The little monster girl. She's breathing heavily as she stands over him, almost like she's fighting back a panic attack. Her eyes wild and unfocused, and he can tell, she isn't seeing him.

"I had to kill her…" Quinn gasps, as tears begin to fall from her eyes. "I had to… I had to… I didn't want to, but I didn't have a choice." She didn't know why she was explaining herself to him, why she needed him to understand that she didn't want to kill that girl, but he had to. Maybe it was because she had killed him too, she didn't know, but it was important to her that he knew she didn't want to kill that girl, and that she hadn't wanted to kill him either.

The rage had left her. She had performed the **Dragon Flame Bomb** what felt like a million times, but even at its most powerful, she had never seen it do anything like it just had before. Whatever that rage was that had consumed her, wherever it had come from, it was gone now. And now she just felt tired and empty. "I'm sorry…" She whispers, "I'm so sorry… I didn't…"

I didn't want to kill you either, is what she wants to say, but she can't bring herself to say it. It was done, she had killed him, he wasn't dead yet but he was as good as. It didn't matter that she hadn't wanted to kill that girl, it didn't matter that she didn't want to kill this man, at the end of the day she had. Quinn looks down at his smoldering form, legs missing, and body beaten and burned by the force of her technique.

Her eyes lock with his and she can tell that the reality of what has happened hasn't set in yet. His body was demolished and his mind was trying to protect itself. And when she kneels down next to him, Quinn can tell that he is terrified of her, and he should be. But it was too late, if he had realized what she was, run from her sooner, if he had not wasted time, if he had killed her immediately, he would still be alive.

"I'm sorry." Quinn says as she places the blade of her katana against his carotid artery, and as she puts an end to his suffering Quinn can feel a little bit of her die with him.


	36. Chapter 35

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto. Please forgive any spelling or grammar errors, I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 35-xXx**

 **s**

Yugito came to a halt, her mind racing and her heart trying to hammer its way out of her chest. She looks around helplessly as she desperately tries to pick up a trail, something anything that she could follow. She had lost the scent some time ago, the faint trace of her sister's blood on the air was long gone and even her enhanced senses could pick up nothing.

"Yoko…" Yugito half cries, half whispers as she runs a hand through her hair. She needed to stay calm, she needed to focus. Losing her mind and panicking would do her no good. She had to keep calm, but it was hard. Harder than anything she had ever had to do.

Yoko had always been by her side, always stood by her, had loved her unconditionally despite what she was. Even her own parents couldn't have said the same thing if they were still alive. When she thought she truly was a monster, that nothing and no one could ever love her, when she was about to give in, it was her baby sister Yoko who had proved her wrong and saved her. It was Yoko who had taught her to open up her heart, had shown her how to accept friendship when offered.

Yoko was the reason she had people like Bee and Samui in her life. Yoko always believed in her, always loved her. At her darkest moment, when she thought that she had nothing to live for it was Yoko who had saved her.

 _Yugito sat in the corner of her room and hugged her knees to her chest, once more her training in learning to control the beast inside of her had gone to hell. It wasn't her fault, she didn't ask for this, it was her parents who had agreed to the stupid Raikage's request and agreed to let her be turned into this… this monster._

 _And now they couldn't even look at her, they were afraid of her. It wasn't her fault and it wasn't fair. She hated them, she hated the looks she received, the glares. She hated her teachers and this village. And most of all she hated this demon that had been put inside of her. Except… she didn't, not really, she wanted to, it would make this so much easier, but she didn't hate them._

 _She was now a jinchūriki, a living vessel for a demon, a weapon. She wasn't a human any more, she wasn't a girl, or even a kunoichi. She was a weapon, a weapon that the village could unleash her upon at any time and against anyone that they deemed fit. Or she would be if she could learn to control what was inside of her._

 _But they didn't understand, no one did, the demon inside of her… whenever she felt its chakra… it made her feel sick and angry. They just didn't get it, she couldn't control what they put in her, no one could. Why, why her, why did she have to bear this? What had she ever done to deserve this?_

 _ **'Nothing, you did nothing child.'**_ _A sinister voice whispers in the back of her mind._

 _"No…" She whines, "Stop it… go away." She begs. From the moment the demon had been placed inside of her she had felt wrong. Like there was a poison inside of her. But it wasn't until recently, when she had been forced to start learning how to draw on its power that the beast began to speak to her, whispering thoughts of death and destruction in her ears. Sending her visions of everyone she loved dying._

 _ **'You owe these people nothing. Look at how they view you, even your own parents hate you.'**_

 _"Stop it, please…"_

 _ **'You never asked for this, and yet they forced it upon you. Now everyone hates you, everyone fears you.'**_

 _"Go away… I'm not listening…"_

 _ **'They've ruined your life, they selfishly sacrificed you for their own gain.'**_

 _Yugito starts to cry, "No… go away…"_

 _ **'Hate them.'**_

 _Yugito clenches her eyes shut and begins to rock back and forth, trying to ignore the demons voice and particularly the way it was making her feel._

 _ **'Despise them.'**_

 _"This is my home… my family…" Yugito whimpers._

 _ **'You gave up everything for them, no, they took everything from you, and you have continued to do everything they have asked of you. And for what? The looks of fear, the cruelty, the abuse. Admit it, you hate them.'**_

 _"I… I…" Yugito's eyes move towards the closed door, an ugly and fierce look on her young face. "I do." She whispers, "I hate them."_

 _Suddenly Yugito finds herself standing in front of a large black gate. On the gate is a single paper seal with the kanji for lock written in black ink. Behind the gate seemed an infinite void of darkness. All around her a blue fire raged furiously around her, she feel the scorching heat beating against her and yet it didn't burn._

 _Ancient eyes slowly and ominously open inside the dark void behind the cage._ _ **'Good,'**_ _a sinister voice hisses,_ _ **'very good. Break the seal, gain vengeance for all of the wrongs done unto you. Unleash our fury upon all who have hurt you and destroy all that they hold dear.'**_

 _Yugito doesn't say anything to answer back. She couldn't, it was like she wasn't in control of her own body, like she was watching herself from a distance. Her mind was blank in the kind of way that only happens when you haven't slept in days. She takes a hesitant step forward, and then another, and slowly she raises her hand towards the paper seal._

 _ **'Yes, soon, soon they will pay for what they have done to you. You who would have protected them, loved them, you whom they have betrayed. Take your vengeance, now!'**_

 _"They betrayed me…" Yugito parrots back, her voice dead. "I loved them and they hate me…" Her hand takes the top right corner of the seal and she begins to peel it._

 _ **'Yessss!'**_ _The voice hisses in delight, knowing the level of destruction that it would soon unleash upon those who dared to imprison it._ _ **'Do it, now!'**_

 _"Now…" Yugito repeats, hollowly._

 _"Yugito? Are you sleeping?" A little voice asks, shaking her lightly._

 _Yugito blinks and suddenly the cage, the blue fire, and the endless void are gone and she's back in her room. And instead of staring into ancient, demonic eyes, she is looking into the bright blue eyes of her little sister Yoko._

 _"Yoko? What are you doing in here?"_

 _"You seemed sad… I wanted to see if you were okay."_

 _"Why?" Yugito asks, too confused by this to let any of her bitterness show._

 _Yoko giggles, "Because you're my big sister silly, and I love you."_

 _Yugito's eyes begin to water, "You love me?" She couldn't have heard that right, no one loved her, not anymore._

 _"Of course."_

 _"But I'm a monster?"_

 _"No you're not, you're Yugito." Yoko says, tilting her head in confusion._

 _Yugito begins to feel choked up and while looking into the earnest and sweet eyes of her little sister she couldn't hold it back and she begins to cry. She can feel Yoko wrap her arms around her in a big hug. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Yoko says, slightly panicking because her big sister was crying and she didn't know why._

 _"Don't be sorry…" Yugito says as she continues to cry, wrapping her arms around her little sister and returning the hug. "I love you too." Someone still loved her, someone still cared, maybe she wasn't the monster she and everyone else thought she was?_

Yoko had saved her. And now she was in trouble, possibly hurt. She had to find her, she had to save her, but she had no idea where to go from here. Yugito looks up into the cloudy sky helplessly, silently begging whatever gods still existed, that something would send her a sign, would point her in the direction she would need to go to find her sister.

It's as all hope is failing her that she senses a powerful technique go off, and hears a massive explosion in the distance. She wasn't a sensor-nin, however if enough chakra was used in a technique, and it was potent enough, then anyone could sense chakra. Combine that with her enhanced senses, and she was able to pick up the general direction of what must be ninja fighting.

Only Kumo shinobi looking for the spy and Konoha infiltrators were in the area, which meant some of her people must have run into trouble. Maybe they even ran into the ones who had Yoko. She could feel Matatabi's chakra begin to flow through her, as she began to race towards the source of the explosion. She didn't know if Yoko was there, but it was the best lead she had.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Yugao easily spun through the air bringing her sword around in a sideways slicing motion, forcing the enemy kunoichi to jump back to avoid being disemboweled. Simultaneously, she used the momentum of her spin to roundhouse kick the enemy shinobi in the face as he tried to attack her from behind, sending him flying back, and when Yugao comes to a stop, she brings her sword up in front of her in a defensive position.

They were good, she had to give them that. Excellent teamwork and technique. They attacked her in unison, using their superior numbers to their advantage. Trying to flank her and catch her off guard, against a less experienced opponent they would have won already. But against someone like her… they were nothing but a persistent annoyance. She would kill them eventually, they were getting tired and frustrated, and their attacks were less and less precise with each run. And every time they attacked her she was able to read them more easily. But they had taken up enough of her time and she was never one to toy with her opponents. It was time to end this.

"Dammit, where's Tai?" The shinobi curses.

"You know that idiot, he's probably toying with her instead of getting the job done-" The kunoichi growls, not taking her eyes off of Yugao, before being interrupted by a large explosion in the distance. The kunoichi pinches her brow in a way that she feels she has done a million times over the years she has known her teammate. "That idiot, he'll be here soon. Between the three of us we can take her, we just have to hold her off until he arrives."

"That knucklehead never takes anything seriously." The shinobi chuckles.

Yugao felt bad for them, they didn't realize the truth. Yes, their teammate's battle was in fact over, but he was the one who had just lost, not Rin. Yugao could sense the immense power behind her student's attack, it was more than she had ever felt Rin use before and if the Sandaime was correct, not even close to what she was capable. She could also sense the weakening and fluttering of the Kumo shinobi's chakra, and finally the way it blinked out of existence as he died.

Rin would come here first, meet up with her, then they would join Hizashi and Hana in protecting Nami. It would be preferable, however, if she defeated her opponents before Rin arrived. After all, how would look if her student won her battle by herself, and yet she, the sensei, didn't? She had been trying to conserve her energy and her chakra, but that time had passed. She knew her enemies now, knew how they moved, fought, and even thought. Two techniques would end this, one each. It would require more of her chakra than she wanted to spend but that was the way it went sometimes.

Yugao shifts her stance, and takes note of the way her opponents both react, trying to prepare themselves and guard against her next attack. It was futile, she could see three openings on her first target that she could exploit in order to take him out quickly with her next attack, and two on the other. They were tired and no longer able to keep up with her, they were counting on backup arriving that was already dead.

Yugao was a ken-jutsu specialist, which meant the majority of her sword techniques required that both of her hands be holding… well, a sword. This made using hand seals, a necessary component of the majority of jutsu, an issue. So like her student, Yugao had become a bit of a perfectionist when it came to her techniques. Whenever she learned a technique she slowly mastered it to the point where she no longer needed hand seals.

Doing so took patience and dedication, and a willingness to endure hours of repetition and practice. Now all she needed to do with the techniques in her arsenal was say the name to help her mind focus her jutsu into being. **"Sacred Leaf Art: Phase One, Dance of the New Moon."**

Yugao can feel her the chakra in her body form and concentrate as she directs it throughout her body, and as she utters the name of her technique she feels the familiar sensation of a jutsu activating. A clone of herself shoots forward from her body, it is pitch black, almost as if it is absorbing all light that hits hit. Yugao springs forward, simultaneously, the technique links her body to that of the clone. It picks up on the subtle shifts in her chakra and copies her moves perfectly, a fraction of a second before she can even make them.

It's disorienting for her opponent, who is so focused on what Yugao had named a, Void Clone, that they can't see her hiding within its shadow. Its movement, both telegraphing and hiding the moves she was going to make. He raises his kunai to block the doppelganger's blade, connecting with the void of pure Yin chakra that created it. The Void Clone's blade passes right through his own and barely misses him, while she brings her own blade around, spinning in front of him and using the momentum to slice his belly open, spilling his guts out onto the earth.

He looks at her in shock, before his gaze moves down to watch his own intestines and stomach spill out onto the ground. He falls onto his knees and as he does so, Yugao puts an end to his suffering, quickly removing his head with one quick sweep of his sword. The Void Clone mimics her actions in perfect synchronization before it shimmers and disperses out of existence.

The world is silent for a moment, not even the wind blows before the silence is shattered by a horrified and broken scream. "NOOOOOOOO!" The Kumo kunoichi flings three shuriken at Yugao with deadly accuracy. Yugao deflects all three easily with her blade before ducking under and sidestepping the Kumo kunoichi's attack. She had hoped to use the shuriken as a distraction to create an opening.

Yugao continues to avoid her opponent's assault, dodging each attack with ease. Her attacks were wild and un-focused. They were more akin to that of a berserker than a shinobi. The two of them must have been more than just teammates to get this kind of reaction for the Kumo kunoichi. It's as she over extends herself that Yugao reacts with her own counter attack, quickly bringing her knee up into the kunoichi's stomach, knocking the wind out of her and lifting her slightly off of her feet.

The Kumo kunoichi falls to her knees hugging her sides as she gasps for air. Yugao feels a twinge of remorse as she looks down at the kunoichi keeled over at her feet. She had fought well and if Yugao and her team had been able to find Nami sooner then maybe she wouldn't have had to fight her or her teammate. But Yugao also knew that it could have just as easily been her and her team on the losing side of this fight. This was the world they lived in and chose, and when you fought someone, it was always to the death.

Yugao brings her blade down, hoping to sever her brain stem and end it quickly, but the Kumo kunoichi has more fight left in her than Yugao had initially thought, and the girl manages to roll out of the way. As she does so she flings three more kunai at Yugao, who manages to side step the first, and block the second one with her sword. However, the third one hits her, if only just, leaving a small scratch along her left cheek.

Yugao allows her enemy to roll away to a safer distance while runs her thumb across the cut, using her limited knowledge of medical jutsu to heal the cut as she does so. She carefully observes the enemy kunoichi, it had been a mistake on her part to assume that it was over, arrogance. It wasn't over until one of them was dead. She needed to be steady and careful, pick her moment, and then strike. Even if she had the advantage, it didn't matter, she had let her guard down and it could have cost her, her life.

The Kumo kunoichi takes a shaky breath as she pushes herself to her feet. "I'm going to kill you," she spits out angrily. Her hands fly into motion, weaving an intricate pattern of hand seals. **"Lightning Style: Lightning Dragon Jutsu!"** She screams out, as electricity begins to surge from her body and coalesce. It violently arcs and whips around her body and grows in size and power, and as it does so the lightning begins to take on the form of a giant dragon.

Lightning jutsu were the fastest of the five standard elemental jutsu. It was the element of piercing after all, and the high speed nature of lightning jutsu lent itself to that. However, like each of the elements, Lighting Jutsu had their own set of weaknesses. Like the fact that while the techniques themselves were fast, they were slow to activate. It was a weakness Yugao was more than happy to exploit.

 **"Sacred Leaf Art: Phase Two, Dance of the Crescent Moon."**

This time two Void Clones emerge from her, shooting out from her left side and then a fraction of a second later her right. The two Void Clones circle around and attack the Kumo kunoichi from the left and right sides, while Yugao rushes forward. As she moves towards her target, she can see that Kumo kunoichi is focusing on her, not her clones. She had misread what her technique, **Dance of the New Moon,** actually did, and had assumed that her Void Clones were merely an illusion, used to cause a distraction.

She was wrong.

The first Void Clone's black blade slices through the Kumo kunoichi on her left side, and as it does so, the concentration she held over her lightning dragon disperses. The lightning arc's around them uncontrollably as the dragon begins to lose its form. Immediately after, the other Void Clone slices through her on the right side. The two pitch black void blades pass through her, violently tearing her chakra out of her body. Her body seizes up, paralyzing her by the pain and the sensation of her chakra being ripped from her body. And as the two Void Clones cross paths, Yugao reaches her target and stabs the Kumo kunoichi through the heart.

All of this happens in a matter of seconds, the Void Clones then disperse into nothingness and the lightning dragon loses all shape and the electricity discharges away. All that is left is Yugao standing in front of the Kumo kunoichi, her blade shoved through her enemy's chest. Her eyes are wide and glassed over and her mouth hangs open. Yugao then rips her blade out and swings in back flicking the blood off of it, and the Kumo kunoichi falls to the earth, dead.

Yugao bows her head for a moment of silence to honor the two shinobi that had fallen to her blade. Her **Dance of the Moon Techniques** were not jutsu that she used lightly and the fact that she had used both phases one and two in the same battle spoke volumes of their skill. The **Dance of the Moon** jutsu were her own original techniques. There were five phases in total, each one corresponding with a phase of the moon. New Moon, Crescent Moon, Half Moon, Gibbous Moon, and finally the Full Moon.

Each phase increased the number of what she called Void Clones. They looked like living shadows of herself and were made up from pure Yin energy, or in other words the physical aspect of the energy that made up chakra. Yang making up the spiritual aspect. Because her Void Clones had no Yang chakra in them, they couldn't think or act for themselves the same way that other clones could, like with shadow clones, or earth and water clones.

The clones had to follow the path that she envisioned for them when they came into being, and they could also only perform the action that she willed into them when she created them. So they could attack, but only once and only in one way. But, because they were made of only Yin chakra they did have some force behind them, nowhere near the physical presence of a shadow clone, which made an actual physical copy, but more than the standard clone jutsu. They couldn't physically interact with or hurt someone, but you could still feel them.

And because they were only made of Yin chakra they had an almost magnetic relationship with Yang chakra. That connection is how she made the clone seem to anticipate her own moves in the **Dance of the New Moon** , and it is also what made them so deadly in the next phase, **Dance of the Crescent Moon**. The Void Clones could do no physical harm to their target, they didn't have enough substance to them, but when they passed through something with Yang chakra in it, their Yin chakra was so concentrated that it pulled the Yang chakra out of whatever it was they hit and towards itself. Giving the sensation of having your chakra ripped from your body when they hit you.

To be hit by these Void Clones of hers was painful to the point of paralysis and they were disruptive of almost every jutsu that she had ever come across. In fact Yugao had never seen any technique retain its form on the rare occasion that she used these jutsu. They were powerful and she was incredibly proud of them, they were her own original jutsu after all, but they took a lot out of her.

Yugao takes a moment to center herself and catch her breath while she waits for her student to arrive. Luckily she doesn't have to wait long, and few minutes later, Rin comes running into view. Physically, she looks a little ruffled, and Yugao could tell that she had taken a couple of nasty blows, but on the whole she looked physically fine.

"You okay kid?" Yugao asks, her voice sympathetic. Because, while Rin looked physically fine, Yugao could tell that mentally she was drowning.

Rin surprises her by answering honestly, "No, not really." She says with a small humorless laugh, "But that doesn't matter right now. We need to hurry."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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Hana struggled to breathe as she forced herself to her feet. She was stuck and it didn't seem to matter what she did, her enemy had a counter for her. If she charged in, the one on the left, Itsu would perform some kind of Lightning Jutsu that would violently repel her and if she tried to keep her distance then Moi, the one on the right, assaulted her with powerful Wind Jutsu. On their own she might have been able to win, but together, at her current level, there wasn't much she could do. As much as she hated to admit it, she was in a no win situation.

She was an Inuzuka, she was supposed to be a fighter, but she was still only a chūnin and her focus had been less on combat and more on medical jutsu and support, particularly as a veterinarian. She was the heir to her clan, but unlike her Mother, and her Grandfather before that, she didn't want to lead as a fighter, but as a healer. There was nothing in this world more loyal than a dog, and the Inuzuka dogs were paragons of that virtue. She hated seeing them get hurt, and even worse die. Ever since she was little it had always upset her, and so she had become a medical ninja and then turned her focus into becoming veterinarian.

Unfortunately, the time and training it took to specialize in that field had cut into her combat training. She still worked out, she still trained in order to maintain her physical prowess, but that was a part of the problem. She knew for a fact that her mother could have wiped the floor with these two and if she had trained herself for combat with as much effort as she had her medical jutsu then she might have been able to as well. But she hadn't, and it was her pack that had paid the price for her neglect. Ni was hurt, Ichi was possibly dead, and San looked like she did, that one more direct hit would finish him off.

Hizashi had his hands full, he couldn't help her without abandoning Nami, and Yugao and Rin were nowhere to be seen. She had failed, she couldn't win this, there was only one thing left for her to do and that was make sure that her death had meaning. If she could take one of them out, if she could even just injure one, even at the cost of her own life, then maybe, just maybe that could make all the difference and give her team and Nami the chance they needed to survive.

"I'm sorry boys…" She whispers softly, so that only her pack could hear her. "I'm sorry I wasn't stronger. You were the best, most loyal partners anyone could ever have asked for… I didn't deserve you… I don't deserve you..."

San can tell that something is wrong with his Hana. He tries to move towards her, he had to protect her, it was his job to protect her. She was his pack. But his body hurt, and he could barely move, the same with his brothers. Their mistress was in danger and none of them could protect her. He can hear Ichi's labored breathing as he tries to stay awake, he can hear the low whine of Ni as he tries and fails to push himself to his feet. And then there was him, he needed to move, it hurt him, every single step, every breath hurt him, but he had to move, he had to protect his Hana.

Hana raises a hand and San stops short at the command, confused. "It's okay boy, you did great."

"I'd always heard stories about how fearsome Konoha's Inuzuka clan were, but I gotta say you don't exactly live up to the hype." Itsu says.

"I agree, let's end this now and go help Raiko with the Hyūga. Then we can grab that damn spy and finally go home." Moi says with a slight huff. It had been entertaining to see their combo techniques work so well, but they had no desire to draw this out any more than they already had. The Konoha girl had fought hard and she was deserving of a quick and honorable death. It hadn't been a difficult fight, but for how hard she had tried she deserved that much at least.

"This isn't over yet." Hana snarls, reaching into her pouch.

Itsui and Moi exchange exasperated looks, because it really was. Still they had to admire her persistence, even if it was a bit of a nuisance. They stop short when they see her pop a tiny red pill into her mouth.

The red pill was one of her own unique recipes, it was a supped up version of her clan's standard soldier pill. She developed it on accident, while trying to lessen the strain that the original pills had on the user. She had finally thought she had figured the formula out when she had taken it for the first time. It worked… but in the exact opposite way that she had intended.

The chakra output provided by the pill was exponentially greater than that of a standard pill, but so was the strain on the body. She had almost died and had spent a week in the hospital the last time she had taken one of these red pills. But since she didn't plan on surviving this anyway, Hana guessed that didn't matter too much anyway.

The pill overcharged the user's system with chakra allowing them to supercharge their chakra intensive techniques. And almost immediately after she bites down on the pill Hana could feel chakra explode through her body, surging and coursing through her. One last burst, one last attack, if she could just take one of them out, then it would be worth her life. She had failed her pack, she had failed her team, she owed them this at the very least.

"UUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Hana screams as her body is overwhelmed by chakra. **"INUZUKA SECRET ART: FANG PASSING FANG JUTSU!"** Hana surges forward, with more force than she ever had before, her body twisting and rotating, turning her into a massive drill that tore through the earth as she rushed towards her enemy, the rotational force behind her technique was like that of a tornado. This was it, this was everything she had to give and more.

Itsu and Moi exchange a quick glance as the super powered attack rushes towards them. Their hands fly into a series of seals as the two long time partners combine their techniques into one.

 **"Lightning Style!"**

 **"Wind Style!"**

Then in unison their voices call out together, _**"Storm Release: Heavens Rage!"**_ And with that, the Lightning and Wind chakra combine and begin to swirl around them, a tornado forming and creating a protective barrier around them, reaching up to the sky and clouds above. As it continues to spin, the tornado gathers more power and begins to generate a massive amount of static electricity, electrifying the whirlwind.

Hana drills into the rotating barrier, the power of the two forces crashing into each other sends debris flying everywhere. For what felt like an eternity the two forces press against each other, until the strain is too much and one of them breaks. The physical toll of the technique is too much for Hana to maintain any longer and her jutsu fails. Hana is sucked into the electrified vortex, cutting winds slicing all along her body while electricity surges through her.

Itsu and Moi end their technique and Hana drops to the ground with a thud. Her body burned, bruised, broken and cut, almost beyond recognition. Hana has never experienced pain like this before, defying her body's wishes of just letting go, her eyes flutter open, and she futilely tries to get up. She briefly manages to raise her head before collapsing again. Trying, but failing, to do anything more than just clench her fists and make her body twitch.

Itsu and Moi take a moment to catch their breath. "Damn…" Itsu gasps, "I take it back, those Inuzuka are tough bastards."

Moi nods his head in agreement, "Agreed." Moi says, breathlessly. Their combo techniques were some of the most powerful jutsu that existed in their village, but they used up a ton of chakra and were meant as a last resort. Luckily for them it had been enough, because the Inuzuka's attack had been awesome to behold. Unfortunately for them, they had never had to force their technique to go on that long before so that was taking its toll as well. "Let's end this now, before she decides to pull another trick out of her sleeve."

"I don't know about that." Itsu chuckles, "I don't think she's got anything left in her. The fact that she survived being inside the vortex is a miracle itself, let alone that long. But I agree, let's end her quickly, she deserves that much."

Before they can move towards Hana's downed form, San limps in front of them, teeth barred as he moves to protect Hana, placing himself between the Kumo shinobi and his mistress. A low growl reverberates through him as he warns them to stay away from his Hana.

Itsu growls in frustration, "I swear… I am going to skin those mutts and turn them into coats."

Moi rolls his eyes at Itsu, though he was annoyed too. Like his teammate he wanted this to be over and done with as well. "Calm down, it's over and we've won."

"No. You haven't." A feminine voice calls out, echoing around them. Both Itsu and Moi look around to find the source of the voice, but are unable to locate it, until in a whirl of leaves and wind two Konoha kunoichi appear between them and their target.

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 **xXx-Author's Note-xXx**

 **s**

 **So, I hope you guys are enjoying the fights for what they are. It's definitely not my strong suit but hopefully they aren't completely awful. I just know that as far as the fights are concerned I don't ever want this to be just a case of Konoha good, enemy bad. I mean, that has it's time and place obviously, but between two ninja villages, and especially with these current situations, I don't want the enemy to just be nameless faces. Other than a select few characters, this is not a case of black and white, good versus evil. The shinobi world and the conflicts within it all exist in a shade of grey.**

 **Quinn/Rin, Yugao, Hana, and Hizashi, may be the protagonists of this arc, but like in regards to Yugito and her little sister, that doesn't necessarily make them heroes. That's why Naruto is such an anomaly within the shinobi world, because he actually is a hero. If he can save everyone he will, he is the exception to kill or be killed rule that exists in the shinobi world. But until that time where he can change the world, horrible situations like this, where people are killed and watch loved ones die, will continue to exist. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I will have the next one up as soon as I can.**


	37. Chapter 36

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or Naruto. Please forgive any spelling or grammar errors, I try to catch them all but I know that I am not always successful.**

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 **xXx-Chapter 36-xXx**

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Hizashi breathed a sigh of relief. The helplessness he had felt as he watched Hana's fight had subsided, because now both Yugao and Rin were on the scene. He had tracked their fights through his Byakugan, not focusing on them, but still being able to see them. He had seen Yugao fight before and she was as impressiveness as ever.

But it was Rin who had surprised him. The power of her jutsu, the grace with which she moved, it was well beyond her years. Her sensor abilities aside, he could now see why the Hokage had been adamant that she join them on this mission. Her kills had been difficult on her, but looking at her now, he wouldn't know it. She was overtly calm, the rage and fire inside of her only visible through the eyes.

If he were facing them in combat, she would be the one he would keep a wary eye on. As it was, now that Hana was safe, he could focus wholly on his enemy. He had kept this Raiko away from Nami so far, but it had been a full-time job. But this fight was over, whether Hizashi struck the killing blow himself or whether Yugao or Rin came and assisted, it was only a matter of time. Hizashi lets a smirk form on his lips, which served to enrage his opponent further. He resumes his attack with greater vigor, but while the blows are harder and faster, they are also sloppier and Hizashi is able to deftly dodge each electrified strike.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn tears her eyes away from the two Kumo shinobi, and kneels down next to Hana. Her body is cut up and broken, but she is still breathing, and though weak, she can also pick up her faint chakra signal. Hana's eyes crack open slightly and she manages a weak smile up at her.

"Hey…" She croaks out weakly.

Quinn smiles back and lightly touches Hana's face. "Hey yourself."

"If… if you'll give me a sec… I'll take care of these guys… no problem." Hana jokes weakly, leaning in slightly to Quinn's gentle touch.

Quinn chuckles lightly. "Yeah, I bet. But you know, if it's no trouble for you, why don't you let me handle them. I could use the practice."

"Sure thing…" Tears begin to form in Hana's eyes as her smile fades away. "Ichi… Ni… San… they're, they're…"

"They're going to be just fine." Quinn says soothingly. "I promise, and you will be too."

"But Ichi… he…"

"Shh," Quinn shushes her gently, "Save your strength. I promise, none of you are going to die here, not today and not while I'm around."

The tears begin to fall from Hana's eyes as she thinks about her nin-ken, "I just… I…" She had to do something, but what? What could she possibly do in her condition or that she hadn't tried already?

"You just rest." Yugao says her eyes locked onto the two enemy Kumo-nin, both of whom had taken up a defensive stance observing and trying to gage the strength of the two new arrivals. "We'll handle this."

"But…"

"You've done enough, you've done your part, now let us do ours." Quinn says gently. She had spent so much time around Ino, Naruto, and Sakura and worrying about how young they were that it never occurred to her just how young Hana was. Hana couldn't have been older than fifteen, maybe sixteen. How much combat had she seen already? She had been chosen for this mission, she was a chūnin already and well on her way to becoming a Jōnin. How much death and violence had she been exposed to in order for her to be here right now? She was definitely younger than Quinn had been when she had died.

Quinn shifts her focus to the two enemy ninja and a part of her, the part that had spent the better part of the last seven years training for moments like this, hated them. They hurt Hana, they hurt one of her own, and a part of her wanted to make them pay. But the other part of her, the part that was still Quinn Fabray felt sorry for them, because how were they different from any of the people she loved and cared for? What choice did they have in all of this, really?

And so she made a decision. It went against everything she had learned in the academy, from Sarutobi-sensei, and Yugao-sensei. It flew in the face of what it meant to be an assassin. She was going to give them a chance. In the end it probably wouldn't matter, they would fight, and they or her or all of them would die, but for the sake of her own soul she had to offer them an out. Quinn stands up and steps forward placing herself just ahead of her sensei and Hana.

The two Kumo-shinobi eye her suspiciously while her sensei watches her with a slightly anxious gaze. "Rin?"

Quinn however doesn't respond to her sensei; her eyes are locked onto two enemy shinobi. Her sensor ability washing over them and telling her just how strong they were and how much they had left in them. "I'm giving you one chance, walk away, please."

"Rin, what are you doing!" Yugao-sensei hisses at her.

"What I have to." Quinn responds, keeping her focus on the two Kumo ninja. And she did, she had to do this, she had to offer them an out.

"What!? You think after all the shit you leaf-nin have pulled we're just going to let you walk away!? You think you can beg for your life!?" One of the Kumo shinobi snarls at her.

Quinn shakes her head, "I'm not begging for my life… I'm begging for yours."

They both appear taken aback by that and she can sense the confusion coming from not only them but Hana as well. But she can also sense the understanding from her sensei and she is eternally grateful for it. They both knew it was a fool's errand on her part but Yugao-sensei understood that she had to at least try.

After they get over their initial shock at her declaration both Kumo-nin scoff at her. "Pretty gutsy move, I'll give you that, but take a look at your friend there, do you honestly think you can beat us!?"

"Yes." Quinn answers, a tone of finality and bitterness in her voice. She knew it was over now. She could sense their anger and incredulity and Quinn knew that no matter what words were exchanged from here on out, this was going to end in blood shed. Still, she had to try. "In your current condition you can't beat me and you certainly can't beat my sensei. So, walk away. Go home to your family and friends. Please, choose life."

Yugao's heart aches for her pupil and a part of her wished for her student's sake that their enemy would take Rin up on her offer. But they wouldn't, no ninja would. Pride, nindo, revenge, a million and one reasons why they wouldn't. If the situations were reversed and she was being offered this chance, she knew that she wouldn't accept either. They had a mission to complete, and in the grand scheme of things their individual lives didn't matter and every shinobi knew this. But she knew and understood why Rin had to offer.

Yugao doesn't bother reacting when the Kumo shinobi make their move, because Rin was already on it. During her offer Rin had realized what Yugao had already known, that this would end in a fight to the death. And so while she had been offering them an out she had also been preparing, converting her chakra until she reached her threshold point. Rin's hands were already in motion completing the sequence for her most powerful technique, the **Fiend Fyre Jutsu** , when the two Kumo shinobi had made what they thought was a surprise attack **.**

Having been on the receiving end of this jutsu herself, Yugao knew just how potent this technique was and that was before Rin had started training under her. It was over in less than a minute, as Rin called out the name of her technique and crimson flames spewed forth from her mouth and began to rapidly consume the area. The red flames taking on the various forms of beasts and monsters, quickly surrounding the two Kumo shinobi.

Yugao had to give it to them, they reacted quickly and maybe if they were at full strength or if they had the third member of their team with them they might have been able to stop it, though Yugao sincerely doubted it. They quickly gathered their chakra and combined their technique into a storm release jutsu, creating a shield of wind and lighting chakra around themselves to keep the crimson flames at bay. On a weaker technique, it may have worked, but this was a jutsu developed by the Third Hokage himself and that Rin had made her own. A technique that by the Third's own admission she could use better than he could.

The fire consumes the wind chakra within the vortex protecting them and overwhelms the lighting chakra, consuming the storm release technique into itself and using it to enhance its own power. A large vortex of fire swirls around them, a pillar of flames that reached to the sky itself. Within the vortex monstrous visages of beasts appeared within the fire tornado and were accompanied by the brief shrieks of pain and agony of the two Kumo ninja as they were incinerated.

Quinn collapses to her knees as she ends the technique. Even with all of her training the **Fiend Fyre Jutsu** took a lot out of her. She had ended the technique as soon as she sensed the last flicker of life leave her victims. That was now four people dead by her hand on this mission. Four people whose blood she would never wash away. But what really scared her about all of this was how easy it was, not the actual execution but just her willingness to do so.

Not counting Mizuki, her first kill had been devastatingly hard, it still bothered her. Her second kill had been difficult as well, but not as much. But these two… it was too easy. When the moment came she hadn't even hesitated. And the regret that she felt at their deaths, was it actual regret? Was she sorry to have killed them? Or, was she only thinking about it because she thought she had to think about it? She's brought out of her thoughts when she feels Yugao place a hand on her shoulder.

"Hizashi is finished, he's just won." Quinn responds, she can sense the chakra of Hizashi's opponent being snuffed out as she says the words. "We need to hurry."

"Take a moment." Yugao says.

"We don't have time. Our fights attracted attention…" She looks off into the distance a far away look on her face as she feels them approach. "The Jinchūriki is coming."

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Things looked bleak as Inoichi dodged another one of Eiji's strikes. Both Shikaku and the Raikage were down, trapped in some kind of cage jutsu. The Raikage's other body guard, the blonde kunoichi, was down. He could sense her chakra still but it was flickering, showing that if she didn't get help soon she wouldn't make it. Chouza was evenly matched with his opponent, neither one of them seemed to be able to get the advantage in their fight. And as for him… as much as he hated to admit it, he was out matched.

He had spent far too much time behind a desk and not enough time out in the field and it showed. At his peak, he had no doubt that this would be a much different fight between himself and Lord Eiji, but he was definitely not in top condition. He trained of course, exercised, practiced his skills, but he had let himself go a bit during these long years of peace and he was paying the price for it.

Physically, Eiji was faster than he was, not by much but enough to make his life difficult. Luckily, he knew how to read people, his whole career had been dedicated to reading the different signs that enemy shinobi gave, of getting inside of people's minds and figuring out how to manipulate them and that was translating into this battle. He was able to determine Eiji's tells and so each attack made was telegraphed, giving him just enough time to counteract Eiji's superior speed.

But that was only a temporary solution, eventually, he would miss something and that would be it. Inoichi wracks his brain, trying to figure out a solution to all of this, a way around Eiji's superior skills. He couldn't beat his opponent physically, but he could try to outthink him. Unfortunately, Eiji was as smart as he was skilled.

There was one way that Inoichi knew he could win this fight but it would take a bit of set up on his part. Inoichi jumps back from Eiji and reaches into his jacket and pulls out a couple of shuriken and flings them at Eiji who uses his blade to block the small projectiles.

Inoichi's hands then fly into a series of hand seals and he takes a deep breath, **"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"** He calls out releasing a powerful blast at his opponent. As Eiji dodges the flame Inoichi reaches into his jacket and pulls out a specially prepared kunai with a seal on it and flings it at the other man. Eiji steps to the side and the kunai flies past him.

"For someone of your reputation, I expected more from you Lord Yamanaka." Eiji taunts.

Inoichi adjusts his stance and pulls out another kunai with a seal on it that matched the other one and holds it out in front of himself defensively. "And you are every bit as skilled as I thought you would be, it's no wonder you haven't beaten me yet."

Eiji's eyes flash with rage. "You Konoha dogs have been a thorn in my family's side for years now, a blemish on our noble history, I am going to enjoy destroying you." Eiji then dashes forward and brings his blade forward with a powerful thrust.

There's a loud crash as the two metal blades clash and Inoichi is able to successfully divert Eiji's attack. Inoichi moves swiftly as he backs away from Eiji, dodging and blocking Eiji's furious onslaught. The sound of metal striking metal echoing around them. "You have insulted me for the last time!" Eiji roars, bringing his blade around for a side slash, which he then follows up with a round house kick striking Inoichi across the face and sending him flying.

Inoichi grunts in pain, dropping his Kunai as he goes flying. It had been a calculated move on his part, but he hadn't anticipated how powerful the strike would actually be and it had left his head ringing. He shakily climbs to his feet, spitting out a tooth and some blood as he does so. If nothing else, everything was in position and it was time to act. This was a dangerous move on his part but it was his best option, because the fact of the matter was he couldn't beat Eiji in the real world. His only chance of victory was with his clan's techniques.

"Not so arrogant now you smug bastard. For the insults to my brother and my family name, I am going to wipe you and your entire clan from existence." Eiji growls.

Inoichi wipes the blood from his mouth, "You haven't won yet."

"Oh, but I will. But before you die I want you to know something." Eiji says, his eyes lighting up with malicious glee.

"And what's that?" Inoichi asks, not really all that curious, but if you could get your enemy talking and distracted then that was only ever a good thing. His indifference at what Eiji has to say is wiped away instantly and has his complete attention with the next words out of the other man's mouth.

"I know all about your daughter, Rin, isn't it?" Eiji enjoys the way the other man flinches when he says his daughter's name. "I know she's here in our territory, I know that she's after the spy, and I know about her abilities."

Inoichi's eyes widen with shock, there was no way he should know about her, not yet anyway. Word about her was going to spread, he knew that, but it couldn't have spread that quickly. How, how did he know about Rin?

"I sent the Jinchūriki after her you know, I ordered her to hunt the little bitch down and bring her before me. For your insults to me and to my brother, I want you to know that I am going to visit unimaginable suffering upon her. She will beg for mercy, beg for death, but it will never come. I am going to visit every cruelty imaginable upon her and know that I will do so because of you."

A burning hatred fills Inoichi upon hearing those words, he would not only win but he would make the Eiji suffer. He raises in hands up and creates the modified bird seal that is used in the Yamanaka clan arts and aims in Eiji's general direction, but more importantly in the direction of one of his special kunai.

Eiji laughs when he sees Inoichi make the seal, "You really must be desperate if you're willing to try that. I'm well aware of the weaknesses of your clan's techniques, you'll only have one shot."

Inoichi glares at him, his mask slipping and his killing intent coming to bear so fiercely that it causes Eiji to shift slightly. He had threatened Rin, and so, Inoichi was going to destroy him. He was going to end this battle and then he was going to find his daughter. "I'm not going to kill you, but by the time I am through with you, you'll wish I had." Inoichi says, his voice soft and calm, belying the raging storm that was inside of him.

"Then let's end this!" Eiji roars as he charges forward, while Inoichi activates his jutsu and sends his consciousness out of his body.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Shikaku grit his teeth as the electricity surged through him and kept him trapped on the ground. He was currently trapped in the middle of a cage jutsu designed specifically to be used against the Raikage. A's potent chakra was powering the jutsu, draining his chakra and using it to keep him trapped. If he weren't in so much pain he would actually be impressed with how ingenious this jutsu was.

It was basically a giant super magnet and the more the Raikage used his chakra and tried to escape the more powerful the cage became. The cage's lightning chakra had the exact opposite polarity of the Raikage's chakra, the two opposite charges attracting one another forcing the Raikage to the ground, immobile. Unfortunately for him it also had the side effect of supercharging the area inside the cage, marked by the four spiked pillars surrounding them, with electricity.

He can hear the Raikage roaring with impotent rage as he worked to try and overpower the jutsu. It was possible, Shikaku mused, A may have enough chakra that he might actually be able to overwhelm the jutsu but it was a bad idea for a couple of reasons. Not the least of which was that Shikaku wouldn't likely survive it.

But another reason was that the Raikage would likely have to deplete his chakra to do so and so while he could possibly escape the cage, he would have no chakra to fight with once he did. And while Shikaku had every confidence in Chouza and Inoichi to handle their opponents, he currently had no idea as to how many enemies were in the area and the last thing they needed was the Raikage to be a vulnerable target.

"Lord Raikage!" Shikaku shouts out as an idea comes to him, his incredible mind working furiously to deconstruct the flaws of this technique they were trapped in. He wasn't looking forward to it, but if he could power through the pain then it presented them with their best shot at escape.

The Raikage's eye's flash towards Shikaku and he can tell instantly that he hasn't decided whether or not Konoha hasn't played some part in springing this trap. Truthfully, the relations between Fire and Lighting were bad enough that Shikaku couldn't blame him for being suspicious. The Raikage manages to rise to his feet, his body rigid and tense as he tries to power through the forces keeping him trapped, but his own immense strength works against him and the Raikage is forced back to the ground with a powerful thud.

While the Raikage was doing this electricity surges through Shikaku as the cage saps power from the Raikage to supercharge itself. When the Raikage finally collapses to the ground and the electric surge stops, it takes all of Shikaku's energy to not lose consciousness. He wasn't sure if he could survive another hit like that, the only way they were both getting out of here alive is if the Raikage listened to him.

Shikaku's muscles strain as he pushes himself up from the ground and on to his hands and knees. While this technique had not been designed to be used against anyone but the Raikage, it still held a tremendous force against him. The lighting chakra inside the cage, powered by the Raikage's own chakra, was so heavy and dense that it was effectively trapping him as well. But there was a flaw in the technique and he knew how to exploit it.

"Lord Raikage! Listen to me! You can't escape this on your own, but I can help! This technique was designed specifically to trap you, it was never meant to hold anyone else. I can get us out of here, but you have to trust me!"

Shikaku's eyes meet the Raikage's and he can see the internal battle going on inside the other man's head. Could he trust an enemy? Were Shikaku and the Konoha delegations involved in this somehow? Even something as petty as whether his pride would allow him to accept this help, along with generations of mistrust between the two villages. All of this was coming into play in matter of seconds as the Raikage took in the entire situation.

"Lord Raikage, you need to trust me."

What felt like an eternity passed between them before the Raikage finally nods his head, gritting his teeth as he does so. "Fine," He growls, "what's the plan?"

"This is really going to hurt, but don't fight it, because I promise you it's our only chance." Shikaku says as he forces himself up from his knees and onto his feet, molding his chakra as he does so.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Hizashi, Yugao, and Quinn all exchange anxious looks as they try to decide on their next move. The three of them are kneeling next to Hana, trying to patch her up as best they can with the little time they have. "How much time do we have?" Hizashi asks Yugao and Rin.

Quinn and Yugao exchange looks before Yugao answers, "I give us about fifteen minutes."

"They're coming in fast and they're… furious, I've never felt this kind of rage before." Quinn adds. The jinchūriki was angry and afraid and the demon was near the surface. She could sense the demonic chakra bubbling over and consuming the human chakra. It wasn't as potent as the night that the Kyuubi attacked, but she could definitely feel the toxicity of demonic chakra to a degree she hadn't since that night. She had never felt this level of intensity from Naruto and it scared her. Is this what happened to jinchūriki who were fully trained, is this the future that awaited her best friend?

"Any chance we can make a break for it?" Hizashi asks, as he looks off in the direction of the jinchūriki. He wasn't a sensor but as they approached he could feel the shift in the air and the weight that the demonic chakra carried.

Yugao shakes her head, "Not without leaving Hana and Nami."

"Then leave me…" Hana groans weakly, "I'll keep them distracted as long as I can, just… just…"

"We're not leaving you!" Quinn yells, tears filling her eyes because she knew it was a viable option and she hated it.

"I don't matter… Nami does." Hana says, smiling sadly up at her. "That's the mission, saving her. It's important and I am more than willing to… to die for this. Save her, leave me, you know it's your best bet. Just… if you can, please, save my boys." Her last request coming out a whimper at the thought of her nin-ken not making it out of this alive.

Quinn looks at Hizashi because as team leader it was his call, the crushing fear that they would actually leave making her want to throw up. But Hizashi pays her no mind, instead he places a fatherly hand on Hana's head and smiles warmly down at her. "Not happening, we're not leaving you or the brothers to die. Yugao and Rin will get you, the brothers, and Nami out of here. I'll go meet the jinchūriki in battle and buy you all as much time as I can."

"You can't!" Quinn says, just as upset at that idea as she was about leaving Hana, who weakly echoes the same thing.

Hizashi carefully ruffles Hana's hair before looking at Rin and giving her a kind, warm smile as well. "It's been an honor to meet and serve with you Rin. I wish that your first mission could have gone a lot smoother, but I am proud to have met you and I know that you will one day be a spectacular kunoichi, in fact you already are."

"Hizashi, no, please there has to be another way." Quinn pleads.

"It won't work." Yugao adds, shaking her head.

"Yugao-"

"No, listen." Yugao interrupts. "Of course, we're not leaving Hana or the brothers behind, but even if you do manage to buy us some time, it won't be enough. The only thing I can think of to get them all out of here is with the help of shadow clone jutsu and that's going to severely weaken me and slow us down. The fact is, you'd have to win the fight to buy us the time we need, otherwise it doesn't matter how much time you buy, they'll just pick up our trail again and considering the fact that we'll be moving five severely injured individuals that won't be hard for them to do."

"Then what do you suggest?" Hizashi asks.

Yugao looks to her student, eyes filled with regret, before looking back at Hizashi and answering. "We move Hana and the brothers into the cave and then the three of us make our stand here. The only way we get out of here alive is if we kill the jinchūriki. Once the host is dead, it will take time for the beast to regain its form and once it does it will just go on a rampage."

"And how is that a good thing?" Hizashi asks. "Last time I checked, rampaging demon was definitely in the 'worst case scenario' category."

"Because the demon doesn't care about us, if we're far away it won't hunt us down, it's only going to care about what's around it in the immediate area. If we're far enough, we don't have to worry about it, it becomes Kumo's problem. They're the ones who brought the jinchūriki into this, let them deal with the fall out."

Hizashi looks over at Rin. "And what about her?" He asks before looking back at Yugao. "A jinchūriki is like nothing else in this world, they are powered by a demon, they are no ordinary shinobi. You and I are both experienced shinobi, but it almost doesn't matter, we both know that those who stay and fight likely won't survive."

"I'm not leaving you." Quinn says, her voice sounding braver than what she felt.

Yugao places a hand on Rin's shoulder and gives it an affectionate squeeze. "Honestly," she says, smiling sadly at her student, "I don't think any of us are going to survive. But I can't leave any of you here alone any more than the rest of you could." She then looks back to Hizashi, "If we're going to die, at least we die together."

Quinn squeezes her eyes shut, trying to suppress the fear she felt. She had already died once and been given a second chance, she doubted she was going to get a third. Still, she manages to not start crying, though a tear does escape and roll down her cheek. "Defending my friends… I can think of worse ways to go." She says her voice cracking.

"Let's get to work." Hizashi says, as he carefully scoops Hana up into his arms.

Quinn doesn't dare look at any of them as she stands up, she doesn't know if she could maintain her composure if she did, but Quinn can sense the pride and regret coming off of both Hizashi and Yugao. She goes over to Ichi and lifts him, he whimpers slightly and licks at her face as she carries him into the cave and sets him down next to Hana. Yugao doing the same with Ni, while San limps in after them.

As Hizashi, Yugao, and Quinn go to leave, Hana grabs at her hand trying to stop her from going. "Don't do this." Hana pleads, "I'm begging you please..."

Quinn looks over at Nami's unconscious form before looking at Hana, "I'm sorry we won't get to go out to dinner." It had been such a throwaway comment when she said it, but now she found that she really was sad to not have the chance.

"Rin… please…"

Quinn places a kiss to Hana's forehead, the way a mother might do for a sick child. Which, Quinn noted, she kind of was. "No matter what happens, you're going to make it home. When you do, if you could do me a favor and just… tell my family, tell my sister that… I love them."

Quinn then stands up, gently but firmly pulling herself free from Hana's grasp. San whimpers and looks up at her dolefully, almost like he's begging her not to go either. Quinn scratches behind his ear, "Stay, protect Hana and the rest."

He whines pitifully, his ears and shoulders drooping, and Quinn gives him one last scratch. "Good boy."

As Hizashi, Yugao, and Rin are exiting the cave, Hana reaches deep inside herself, trying to find the strength to go after them, to stop them. But she couldn't do it, her body had nothing left to give and the best she could do was raise her hand up towards their retreating forms. Almost as if she could summon them back through sheer force of will. However, her hand drops to the ground and her world starts to go dark as she loses consciousness, her last sensations are of San lying down next to her and a deep sense of guilt, because she should be out there fighting with them.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn follows Hizashi and Yugao out of the cave and over by the two charred corpses of the Kumo shinobi she had killed. This is where they would make their final stand, this is where she would die.

"We'll make our stand here, during the fight, we need to try and lure the jinchūriki away. Once they are down we need to get back here as quickly as we can and get them and ourselves as far away as we can. The demon won't care about us and any other Kumo shinobi in the area will be too preoccupied by the demon to pursue us." Hizashi says.

Quinn nods her head and Yugao asks, "So, how do we do this? What's our battle plan?"

"I will engage head on, the gentle fist style is our best weapon against this foe. It will basically come down to how quickly I can shut down their chakra versus how quickly they can restore it. Yugao, your job is to provide me with what openings you can and to keep it as distracted as possible. If you get an opening and can kill it, then obviously do so."

"And what about me?" Quinn asks.

"You are not to engage it directly. Your job is to provide midrange support, use your fire jutsu where applicable and call out warnings when you can. Do not engage directly, do you understand."

Quinn nods her head.

"Good. How much time do we have? I can feel them getting closer."

"Two minutes, give or take." Quinn responds. Her heart is in her throat, she doesn't want to die, not again. She was so scared right now and all she wanted to do was run away, but she couldn't. As scared as she was right now, the idea of leaving Yugao and Hizashi to fight on their own was unthinkable. She would stay, she would fight, and she would die, but at least in this death she could find some meaning.

As she and the others stand ready, waiting for their doom, Quinn's mind drifts to her mother and her father. Did they know how much she loved them? Did they know how lucky she was to have them? She loved them, they were her mom and dad, and while she knew she didn't deserve them, she did love them. And Ino, her sister, her twin. What would Ino think? She hadn't even gotten to say goodbye. What would this do to her sister? What would her death mean to her friends? To Naruto and Sakura as well.

Mom, Dad, Ino, Naruto, Sakura… the most important people in her world. Her second chance to get things right. They loved her, she couldn't understand why, but they did. She never could figure out why this second chance of hers had blessed her with them, she knew she didn't deserve them. She knew that, and yet, she had been blessed with having them in her life anyway. She could only hope that her death wouldn't hurt them too badly.

"No tears. Stand firm and face your fate with the resolve of a proud kunoichi." Yugao says her voice firm. Both she and Hizashi are staring straight ahead, ready for battle.

Quinn wipes her eyes and hardens her resolve. This was it, the jinchūriki would be here any moment. Even without being a sensor it would be impossible to miss the overwhelming power of the demonic chakra. She could almost imagine a clock ticking down as the arrival neared, ten, nine, eight…

Quinn takes a single calming breath and focus on preparing mentally for the upcoming battle, seven, six, five, four…

This was it, even if she died, if the others lived, then that would be worth it. She wasn't here for herself, she was here for Yugao, Hizashi, Hana, and Nami. She was here so that Ino, Naruto, and Sakura didn't have to be. Her life, whether it was here or back in the other world held very little meaning or importance. But right here, right now, she could matter.

Three.

Naruto, Sakura...

Two.

Mom, Dad…

One.

Ino…

A cracked and furious scream filled the air as a blonde kunoichi leapt down in front of them. Her eyes were a demonic yellow, and her canines were elongated into fangs. Her fists clenching and unclenching, her fingers tipped with sharp claws. She stood rigged, her mouth turned up into a snarl as she glared at them. She looked feral and unhinged, with wisps of blue flame-like chakra covering her body, and the killing intent that leaked from her almost caused Quinn's knees to buckle and shake with fear.

"Where is she!?" Yugito screams.

Hizashi activates his Byakugan and Yugao draws her sword, the two of them getting into their fighting stances, ready to engage the enemy.

"TELL ME WHERE SHE IS RIGHT NOW!"

 **s**

 **xXx- Author's Note-xXx**

 **s**

 **I am so, so, so sorry about how long it has taken me to update. I have not abandoned or given up on this story and I am already working on the next chapter, but things just got so hectic for me lately. First with school and then with family things, that I just didn't have the time or the energy to really work on this story the way that I wanted to. But believe me, I've been thinking a lot about this story and where I want to take it and things I want to do. And please know that I am still just as excited about this story right now as I was when I first started it.**

 **I apologize as well if this chapter is a little rough. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I have a hard time writing fights, if I could skip them I would. Plus there are so many characters to cover right now. Things are definitely coming to a head, Inoichi and Eiji are clashing, Shikaku and the Raikage are trapped, the spy and what's happening at East Castle, and of course, Yugito catching up with Quinn/Rin and the others. A lot to cover, a lot of plot points to bring together an bring to an end, and I just hope that you are all still enjoying this. Thank you for reading and reviewing and for the continued support of this strange little story. I feel like there is so much more I should say, but I honestly don't know what, so I think I will leave it here on this note, expressing just how grateful I am to all of you who continue to read and enjoy this story.**


	38. Chapter 37

**I'm really sorry about the long wait between updates, life has kept me busy and when I've had down time I just haven't really been writing. It's not the longest chapter I've written but it's still a fairly good size. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it, and as always, please forgive any spelling and grammar errors, I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 37-xXx**

 **s**

Chouza watched as Eiji charged at his best friend and so he dashed forward with a speed that belied his great size, hoping to intercept. He was Chouza of the Akimichi clan, and fabled member of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, he would not let his comrade and best friend fall here, not to the likes of scum like Eiji. Yet just as quickly as he had moved to intercept, the Kumo-nin Gi matched him and blocked his path.

Chouza is forced to leap back as Gi's lightning fists slam into the ground where he had just been, sending debris flying everywhere. "Your fight is with me!" Gi snarls, leaping forward to continue his attack.

Chouza jumps back once more before sending a surge of chakra through his right arm, causing it to grow in size to an enormous level. He then brings it crashing down on top of the Kumo-nin, intending to squash him like a bug, but the lighting shinobi is too fast and rolls out of the way, and all his strike does is create a crater in the earth.

Chouza chances a glance over at his friend and sees him fall to the ground and for a moment Chouza's heart sinks, but then he notices that something is off, Eiji is just standing there, his blade drawn, but there is no blood. Could it be…?

But no, Eiji was too fast, Chouza hated to admit it. There's no way that Inoichi could have hit him with his technique unless…

Chouza's eyes sweep the field of battle and he spots them, the special kunai that Inoichi had developed. A smile crosses Chouza's face, that sly devil, of course he would take that risk, but it seemed to have payed off.

"Well, things have just gotten interesting." Chouza says to the Kumo-nin in front of him.

Gi gives a disdainful harrumph, having noticed the same thing that Chouza had, "It seems your companion managed to pull off his technique. Makes no difference to me, I'll just kill you quickly then kill Eiji while he's in that state. That'll take care of your friend and him both and with the Raikage stuck in my technique, I needn't share the glory of crushing you with that weasel."

Chouza shakes his head, "Shameful, that you would abandon a comrade so easily, but then you turned on your own Kage just as easily as well, didn't you? I don't know why I expected loyalty from a traitor but there it is, I guess I've grown soft in these years of peace. But like you said, it makes no difference, you won't be killing Eiji, or Inoichi, or anyone else, because you won't get past me."

Chouza crosses his arms in front of him into an 'X' shape and lets his deep wells of chakra surge through him, **"Akimichi Secret Technique: Rage of the Juggernaut!"** __It was one of his personal techniques, developed from **Multi-Size Jutsu** that allowed his clan to grow to colossal size. He took all that chakra and instead of increasing in size it made his body denser, he became incredibly strong, strong enough to crush steel in his bare hands. He gave up mobility for speed, becoming an unstoppable bullet. And while his chakra was concentrated his skin became nigh impenetrable.

It was a technique he had developed to help avoid taking the three colored pills of his clan. Calorie control jutsu was incredibly hard on the body, anyone other than an Akimichi who tried it was asking for certain death. Even an untrained Akimichi who tried it was likely to succumb to the harsh pressure the techniques put on them and using Calorie control was draining.

This was an altered form, it was still hard on the body, but not to the degree that those techniques were. It would allow him to go near all out on this Gi character and still retain an ace up his sleeve should it fail. And if it didn't, as long as he had some time to rest a bit, he should be good to keep fighting if necessary.

He had no doubt that Inoichi was going to tear Eiji apart from the inside out, he'd heard the man threaten Rin and Inoichi was not going to forget that. If the technique hit, and it looked like it did, then Inoichi had won. And as for Shikaku, if his friend hadn't already figured a way out of that jutsu then he'd give up deep fried beef. Of course, Shikaku getting out wasn't an issue, it was the mood that the Raikage would be in once they did. If the man still thought of he and his team as enemies then Chouza couldn't risk using all of his energies on Gi.

"I'll end this quickly." Chouza says, taking a step forward and the ground cracking under his feet as he does so. The increase in his density was immense, he easily weighed at least a ton by this point.

"Don't get cocky!" Gi snarls, the lighting around his fist raging to match its master's mood. The two juggernauts crashing towards each other, the earth shaking beneath their fury.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

When the earth begins to tremble under his feet Shikaku can't help but chuckle, it seemed like Chouza was getting serious. Well there was nothing to do for it, it was time he got serious as well. The Raikage had agreed to follow his lead and now all that was left was to do it. This would drain him, of chakra, of stamina, it was going to hurt like hell, but it would get both he and the Raikage out of here.

He would be pretty much useless in a fight after this, and so he would have to trust in Chouza and Inoichi to pick up the slack in case the Raikage decided to turn on them. It was hard to tell with Kumo shinobi, 'A' was more honorable than his predecessor and he wouldn't appreciate the treason done here today, but Kumo and Konoha were still enemies.

Still, there was nothing for it, he could worry about the Raikage's mood after they were free. "Alright Lord Raikage, remember what I said don't fight me on this. It's going to hurt and your first instinct is going to be to summon your chakra, don't. This technique is tuned specifically to your chakra signature, it's why I can still move and you can't. If you call on your chakra while still inside, you are only going to increase the strength of the cage. Don't fight."

"I hear you." The Raikage growls from his position on the ground. The force of the technique forcing him onto his stomach.

"Alright… here goes nothing." Shikaku mutters under his breath, struggling to his feet, the lighting chakra surging through him as he does so. It felt like every nerve in his body was being stabbed by little tiny needles, but he grits his teeth and forces himself to ignore the pain. He then puts his hands into the sign of the rat, **"Nara Secret Technique: Shadow Bind Jutsu!"**

Normally he didn't need to say the technique and given a moment to focus he didn't even need the hand signs to manipulate his shadow, but the pain that was flowing through his body was keeping him from utilizing the technique with the finesse that he was used to. Still, once activated it was easy enough to manipulate his shadow until it connected with the Raikage.

"Remember Lord Raikage, don't fight it." Shikaku says as he uses his technique to force the Raikage to his feet.

As the Raikage moves it cause the towers to spark lighting bolts all about them, scorching the earth. It was reacting violently to the Raikage moving but because it was Shikaku who was forcing the movement, the technique could not steal more strength from him. It was a technique designed specifically to hold and drain the Raikage, it was not meant to capture more than one person, a flaw in the design.

Had 'A' been trapped in here alone, then it was unlikely the man could have escaped, but with Shikaku here, it provided the Raikage a means of movement and access to chakra that the technique could not account for. Of course, being inside the technique at all was dangerous for anyone. Lighting chakra surged through the area between the four towers and being in here was causing him excruciating pain. It was a devastating trap, but not perfect.

And so, step by step, gritting his teeth through the pain, forcing himself to stay standing despite the pressure on him, Shikaku walked himself and the Raikege slowly out of the trap.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Eiji's body wouldn't move and he didn't understand it, the Yamanaka's technique had missed him, he was sure of it. And yet here he stood over the man's body unable to move even a finger. Inoichi Yamanaka was down, the fight was over, how come he couldn't move?

 _"The answer is simple."_ A voice calls out in his mind.

"What…" He manages to growl out.

 _"My initial strike wasn't aimed at you, it was aimed at the kunai over there…"_ the voice chuckles, _"Sorry, let me show you."_

Eiji is horrified when his neck turns without his say so.

 _"Do you see that kunai over there, the one I had dropped earlier, and now over there, the one behind you? They are special kunai that I developed, they contain seals that allow me to transfer my essence to them and to each other. This allows me to use my clan's jutsu from a couple of different angles using my body as bait."_

"Impossible!" Eiji grounds out, his body is shaking as he tries to regain control and cast the intruder out of his mind.

 _"Not at all. Actually, I have the Fourth Hokage to thank for this technique, it was his Thunder God technique that inspired it. I can't teleport my body obviously, but my mind, that's another story entirely. So I transferred my mind from one kunai to the other, striking you from behind. You were so focused on what was in front of you that hitting you was easy. You may as well have been standing still."_

"Damn you… when I get… out of here… when I get… free-"

Inoichi actually starts to laugh, the sound echoing in the back of his mind, cruel and taunting, _"You've brought war to my village, you tried to kill me and my friends, you have somehow managed to get a spy into our ranks, and, most importantly of all, you threatened my daughter, do you honestly think you're getting out of this. Normally, when routing through a person's mind I try to be gentle, the damage I can cause in here is unimaginable, even when I'm careful I run the risk of leaving my target nothing but a slobbering vegetable."_

Eiji feels a shiver of fear run up and down his spine.

 _"But you, you threatened my daughter, I can see in your mind clearly what you had planned for her."_ Inoichi snarls.

"No… I didn't mean… I was… bluffing…" Eiji pleads, his heart racing.

" _No, you weren't. If you had left her out of this I would have been kind, I would have ended this quickly, but you threatened my Rin, I'm going to make you suffer. I'm going to tear out every little secret that your mind is trying to hide, I'm going to rip it from you, but I won't kill you, no, death is too kind for you. I'm going to trap you inside your own mind. I'm going to rip your mind apart so badly that it will never be able to reconnect with the rest of your body, you will spend the rest of your life watching the world pass you by. A prisoner in your own body, unable to move, or talk, or do anything for the rest of your pitiful existence."_

"W-wait… please…" Eiji tries to call out, as a sharp pain lances through his mind and unbidden memories flash before his eyes as Inoichi Yamanaka begins to tear his mind apart, reading his memories, taking in the information that he is looking for. All the while Eiji is helpless to fight it.

Eiji's body begins to shake and blood drips from his nose.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

He was free.

He was free from that wretched technique and it was like he could breathe again. 'A' felt like he was supercharged with energy, though he knew the sensation was only in his mind, a side effect of being freed from the draining sensation of the sealing jutsu that had trapped him.

He was free and he was angry. His eyes sweep the battlefield, Samui, his most loyal kunoichi lay bleeding on the ground, left to die like some kind of dog by that bastard Eiji and that traitor Gi. Shikaku Nara was on his knees breathing heavily, catching his breath after the ordeal of forcing their way out of the jutsu. He had done essentially nothing, exactly as the Nara had asked, and even still it had been a painful experience. It rankled his pride but he would not have been able to escape without the other man.

Eiji was standing over the body of the Yamanaka and Gi was locked in battle with the Akimichi. The Akimichi was faster and stronger, but Gi had the better agility at the moment and was dodging each of the earth-shattering strikes of the other man. Of course, it was all that his cousin could do, one strike from the Akimichi meant certain death for Gi.

But that suited 'A' just fine. Eiji's betrayal was a surprise but not unexpected. But Gi was family, his betrayal cut deep. It was just as well that the Akimichi couldn't land a blow, it just meant that he would get to be the one to take him down.

'A' gather's his chakra, **"Lighting Release: Lighting Straight."** His voice is calm and steady, but tinged with rage and hatred.

Nobody has time to even blink before 'A' has crossed the battlefield and with all of his considerable strength slams his fist into the side of Gi's head, sending him flying. But not far enough, in another blink he has already positioned himself in front of the tumbling, oncoming form of Gi, sending him flying with another punch.

'A' can feel it, each of his strikes causing the bones of the other man to crack under his unyielding force, as he savagely beats the man around the battlefield. In a matter of seconds 'A' has beaten down his cousin down to a bloody pulp. If Samui weren't hurt, if he couldn't feel the battle taking place back at East Castle, if he weren't in such a hurry and he had the time to do this right, he would make the other man suffer for his betrayal.

Gi looks up at him from on the ground. He was laid out flat with a blackened right eye, his left eye hanging from its socket. He had been hit by surprise and with such speed and ferocity that he'd had no time to mount any kind of defense. He looked like a mountain had been dropped on him, "C-cousin… damn… damn- ACK!"

He wasn't able to finish his sentence, because with a sickening crunch, 'A' had brought his foot down, crushing the other man's skull underneath.

He then turns his attention to Eiji, "Eiji!" He roars, but the other man pays him no attention.

This fills the Raikage with an indignant fury, how dare this treacherous whelp ignore him. He takes a menacing step forward but finds his path blocked by the Nara and Akimichi.

"Get out of my way." He growls.

"We can't let you harm him, at least not yet Lord Raikage." The Akimichi says.

"I'm grateful for the assistance you Konoha shinobi have rendered me today, but if you are stupid enough to get in my way then I will destroy you."

"Inoichi is still inside Eiji's mind, he's going to get to the truth of the matter, if you injure Eiji's body now, then you'll harm Inoichi and we cannot allow that. Besides, your subordinate is still alive, you should go to her while there is still time to save her. Shikaku Nara says.

'A' growls menacingly and for a moment even he's not sure if he's going to force his way through. There are so many reasons to do so right now, neither of the Konoha shinobi are strong enough to face him, Eiji is completely helpless, and traitor or no, he didn't want that Yamanaka digging through Eiji's mind. But in the end, it wasn't worth Samui's life.

"Tch." 'A' scoffs as he moves to Samui's side. She's incredibly pale and she groans weakly when he kneels down by her side, tearing his shirt off and using it as a makeshift press for her wound.

"L-lord… Raikage…" She says softly, her voice weak, barely above a whisper.

"Quiet, save your strength, that's an order." He says, but not unkindly.

"F-forgive me…" She gasps out, "I… I should… should have seen… this coming…"

"Enough of that kind of talk, Eiji's betrayal should have been obvious, but Gi's came from nowhere."

"I'm… supposed to… to… protect you…" Samui lets out a pitiful whimper as she loses consciousness once more.

"Lord Raikage." The Akimichi says, stepping towards him and 'A' finds himself tensing for a fight. Was this where these leaf-nin showed their true colors? They would be sorry, Samui was precious to him, if they thought what he did to Gi was something, that would pale in comparison to what he would do to them if they attacked him and put Samui in further danger.

"What do you want?" 'A' asks, waiting for the other kunai to drop and for battle to begin.

"I'm not a medic-nin, but I do have some training. If you would allow me to, I can look over your companion, patch her up well enough, at least until we can get her some real medical attention.

'A' eyes him suspiciously, but can sense no guile from the other man. It could be a trick, but he could feel Samui's blood soaking through the fabric of his shirt. He could see the pallor of her skin, already pale, but now with a ashen shade to it. The smell of death lingering on the air. He had no choice but to continue to trust these leaf shinobi, at least if he wanted Samui to live.

'A' nods his head.

The Akimichi kneels down next to her and carefully moves the blood-soaked shirt out of the way, moving her own crimson dyed shirt aside to get a better look at the wound. He pulls out a small flask and looks at 'A,' "Hold her down, this is going to hurt but it'll help clean the wound and prevent infection.

When the Akimichi opens the flask, the scent of mint and honey hits his nose, and the man pours a golden-brown liquid onto the wound. Samui's eyes flash open and she inhales sharply.

"Stay still." He commands her, holding her shoulders down. Her eyes are wide and full of fright, darting nervously from the Konoha-nin and back to him. "Focus on me." He tells her, "keep focused only on me, I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

"Y-yes, Lord Rai… Raikage-ahh!" She shrieks in pain, the Akimichi had now taken out a green paste and was rubbing it over the wound in her belly.

"This will staunch the bleeding and help to stimulate cell growth." The Akimichi explains. "Now the back."

It doesn't take them long to clean and apply the paste, after which they applied bandages to cover the wound. 'A' found himself grateful that these Konoha shinobi seemed prepared because to his shame he had been woefully unprepared.

"Thank you." 'A' says.

The Akimichi nods his head, but before they can say anything more a gasp of breath catches their attention. And as 'A' looks over to the source he watches as Eiji falls to the ground while Shikaku Nara helps Inoichi Yamanaka to his feet.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Inoichi opens his eyes and takes in a sharp breath, taking a second to compose himself. He looks up from his place on the ground and sees Shikaku standing over him, grinning. "Enjoy your nap?"

Inoichi chuckles, "Immensely, and I've learned things, important things."

Shikaku offers Inoichi his hand and helps pull him to his feet. "I figured as much, how long is

Eiji down for?"

A dark look crosses Inoichi's face, "Forever. I tore his mind apart."

Shikaku keeps his expression neutral, "I see…"

Inoichi scowls at his friend, "He threatened Rin, I only wish I could have done more."

Both men look down at the prone form of Eiji, his mouth is open, slack jawed, and his eyes have a glassy glaze to them. "Did you get the information you needed from him?" Shikaku asks.

"I did." Inoichi replies.

"Then how you handled your battle is none of my business."

Inoichi glares at Shikaku, "He threatened my daughter and because of him she's in even greater danger, I'll make my report to you, tell you what I know and then I need to go find her."

Shikaku sighs, "This whole thing has been one giant mess from the beginning, alright fine, what did you learn?"

"Yes, what did you learn?" The Raikage asks, approaching them. His patched-up subordinate in his arms, while Chouza came up beside him.

Inoichi gives a subtle glance to Shikaku, who gives a slight nod of the head, giving him permission to speak freely. "Eiji has been planning this for a while. His ultimate goal was to start a war with Konoha by assassinating you and blaming it on us. From there, with the help of Gi and a few other high-ranking shinobi he would seize control of the Hidden Cloud Village and become the new Raikage. He had help from our side as well, there was a spy in our midst, passing him along information. They're the reason we had to come here in the first place." Inoichi says, letting Shikaku know, without actually saying the words that the spy is the one had informed Kumo of Nami Yamata's existence in the first place.

"I see, and who is this traitor of ours?" Shikaku asks.

"Yuko Nakano." Inoichi says.

"This will devastate Takeko." Chouza says, looking troubled.

Inoichi nods his head, "I wish it weren't so, but it is. We need to hurry back to the castle, already our forces are engaged in battle."

"I gave strict orders for my shinobi not to engage." 'A' says.

"As did I, but still, even from this distance you can feel it happening, a large battle between shinobi forces." Shikaku says. If enough chakra was being used then even non-sensor types could feel it.

"And Yuko's part in this was to start a fight between our forces while we and the Raikage were away. Tensions were already high, it wouldn't take much to spark a fight." Inoichi says.

"Troublesome…" Shikaku mutters darkly, "Lord Raikage-"

"Don't bother, I agree, this whole thing has been troublesome to say the least. I'm willing to let the existing treaty stand as is, and I'll call off the hunt for your spy, enough blood has been spent and the damage is done." The Raikage concedes.

"Konoha will pay reparations." Shikaku says, knowing he had to give the Raikage something. "And both sides will reduce our forces along the borders. It's time for de-escalation, now more than ever."

"Agreed. Peace benefits us all."

"We need to hurry, back to East Castle if we hope to put a stop to all of this before it's too late." Chouza says.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Yuko Nakano looked down from the tower at the battle below and felt nothing. Men and women were fighting for their lives, dying because of events she had helped to set into motion and she felt nothing. Takeko was dead and with her any empathy that she may have once felt. She had betrayed Konoha, but their pain was secondary to having her sister's blood on her hands, and she could not care less about what happened to the Kumo shinobi.

Perhaps she wouldn't even stick around to see Eiji's plan come to fruition. He had to have taken out the Raikage by now. Perhaps instead of switching sides she would just leave, go as far away from this place as she could. Maybe she would even cross the great seas to the lands far from here. What did she care about any of it.

She couldn't feel regret, it was too late for that, but that didn't mean she had to stay. What did she owe anybody, anymore? Her fealty had belonged to her sister, not Konoha, and certainly not Kumo. But even leaving lacked any appeal to her. What was the point? All she had done, she had done to spare her own life, she had done to finally be free to live her own life, and now she was finding that she felt that life was pointless.

Explosions and screams filled the air as the two forces fought. Kumo outnumbered and, with the presence of the jinchūriki, out powered them, but Konoha had the better ground. Even for ninja, taking a castle that was properly defended was difficult. Shinobi and soldiers, men and women alike all fighting and killing for the belief that what they were doing was their only choice.

So much chaos, so much death… and she didn't care.

Suddenly, there is a roar of thunder more terrible than anything Yuko had ever heard before, accompanied by a brilliant flash of lightning, that shown brighter than the sun, whiting out the world for just a moment.

The Raikage has arrived and he is followed by all three members of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. A defeated laugh escapes from Yuko's lips. "it was all pointless."

Yuko looks over at her sister's still form. As beautiful in death as she had been in life, a life she had snuffed out like it was nothing. The look of shock and betrayal on her sister's face as she realized what was happening, as she lay dying in Yuko's arms, comes flashing through her mind.

"Nothing really matters in the end, does it sister?" Yuko asks her sister's body, slowly walking towards it.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Inoichi could only look on in awe at the raw power of the Raikage's technique. When they got back the situation was worse than they feared, both sides were clashing with a fury that Inoichi hadn't seen since the last war. This was no battle, it was slaughter. Inoichi didn't even know where to begin to stop it.

The Raikage however had turned to Chouza and without a word handed his injured companion over to Chouza, a solemn look of understanding passing between the two men. Protect her, protect her at all costs. The Raikage then stepped forward and unleashed one of the most devastating techniques that Inoichi had ever seen.

 **"Raikage's Secret Technique: Wrath of the Thunder God!"**

The technique was aptly named, Inoichi felt as though only a god, or perhaps a Kage, could call forth such a technique. A powerful bolt of lightning struck the earth, so bright that Inoichi was forced to cover his eyes, and the crack of thunder that accompanied it was deafening. The Raikage had done exactly what he had set out to do, call the attention of everyone on the battle field.

The fighting stopped as everyone, Konoha and Kumo alike, turned to look at the source of the powerful technique. A man with flowing octopus tentacles and more swords than any one person could ever need makes his way towards them. Inoichi can sense the power coming from him and remembers the description from his bingo-book, the man could only be one person, the jinchūriki of the eight-tails, Killer-B. He is followed closely by a boy covered in blood, sucking on a lollipop, and a girl with pink hair, equally covered.

"Yo bro- No Samui! That's it, this beast is gonna unleash, ya fools!" The man says, glaring at Chouza and the state of the kunoichi in his arms. His chakra flaring as he gets ready to attack.

The boy and girl who had come up with him crying out their pain at seeing their fallen comrade, rage and hatred in their eyes as they get ready to fight.

Meanwhile, three leaf ninja approach them as well, weapons at the ready, leading them was Kimura, one of Takeko's officers. "Lord Nara!" He calls out, stopping, he and the other two jōnin ready to jump in as needed.

"What happened here, I ordered everyone to stand down." Shikaku says, his tone sounds only slightly annoyed, but Inoichi new his friend well enough to know when he was pissed. A quick glance over at Chouza shows him that he can see it too.

"As did I." The Raikage snarls, "You were not to engage them."

"Yo bro!" Killer B says, sounding offended, "These fools attacked us, ya hear! We had to go toe to toe and show them the woe!"

The Raikage turns and gives a suspicious glare to Shikaku, but before he can respond Kimura snarls out, "These scum assassinated lady Takeko! All of their talk of peace and they murdered her while pretending to negotiate for peace!"

"Yo, That's a lie!" B snaps, getting ready to attack.

"Takeko's dead?" Shikaku asks, like he can't believe it.

Inoichi was shocked too, it just didn't seem possible. She had always been so strong, there was a reason that the Hokage had entrusted her with the defense of their border with Kumo, and yet, when he had learned who the spy was…

"The spy." Inoichi says aloud.

Shikaku's eyes narrow, "So it would seem. Eiji wanted a war… the only question is," He says, turning to look at the Raikage, "did he get one."

The Raikage and Shikaku lock eyes and the seconds seem like hours before the Raikage speaks, "No. There will be no more. B, Omoi, Karui, send word to our forces, have them pull back to camp."

"Lord Raikage, have your men bring the wounded into the castle, we'll help treat them." Shikaku says.

The Raikage nods his head, seeing the gesture for the olive branch it was.

"Yo, you can't be trustin' these leaf traitors' bro! Look at Samui!"

"Quiet B, it wasn't the leaf-nin who did this to Samui, it was Eiji." The Raikage says, his voice steady but Inoichi could feel the tension in it, hidden away.

"Eiji?" B mutters aloud, his voice tinged with disbelief.

"I'll give you a full list of who was with Eiji, there aren't many of them, but enough that you'll want to take care of it." Inoichi offers, this whole situation was a giant mess, and instability in Kumo was no good for Konoha right now either. It seemed that many in the Hidden Cloud Village were eager for war and it was the current Raikage who was holding the war hawks back. It seemed that every village was cursed with those who only sought violence. The Raikage was a powerful enemy shinobi for sure, but he wanted peace just as much as they did.

"Lord Nara, Lord Yamanaka!" Kimura cries, "You can't be serious, they murdered Lady Takeko!"

"No, they didn't, we have a traitor in our midst." Inoichi says darkly. Takeko was dead, killed by the spy, her own sister, to make it look like a Kumo assassination. It was a dark day all around.

"A traitor?" Kimura asks, "No," He shakes his head, "I don't believe it."

Chouza gives him a sad smile, "It's true. In this case, it is not Kumo who is the enemy, the enemy is one of our own. We were all fooled and too many people were hurt and have died because of it. Peace, that is what we must strive towards, peace. If we cannot attain that, then the people who died here today, will have truly died for nothing."

"Who is the traitor?" Kimura asks.

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio exchange dark looks before Shikaku answers, "Yuko, Yuko Nakano."

"No…" But even as he denies it, it's as if the other shoe drops and the pain he felt at the loss of his commander, someone he respected more than anyone in this world, gives way to cool logic. The suspicious nature of Lady Takeko's death, the way there had been no sign of a struggle, how he had not seen Yuko since the start of the battle. He didn't want it to be true, but hearing it… he couldn't deny that she had been a bit different lately. "We need to find her." He finishes, his voice dull.

"Agreed, capture her, alive, if at all possible." Shikaku orders. "I have a lot of questions for her."

"As do I." The Raikage says.

And Inoichi almost laughs at the slight wince that Shikaku makes, there was no way to turn that down. "Very well." Shikaku agrees.

It takes them a bit to reorganize and get everyone under control, tempers were running high, but before long, Konoha and Kumo shinobi alike were helping to move the wounded into the castle. Thanks to Lady Tsunade, before she had left, Konoha boasted the best medical ninja's in the world.

"Once everything is locked down here, I need to go find Rin." Inoichi says.

Chouza hands Samui over to a medic-nin, before turning to him, "I'll go with you."

"Who's Rin?" Omoi asks, curiously. He and the pink-haired girl had quickly made their way back to the Raikage's side and more importantly, their team leader's, after informing a couple of the Kumo commanders of the Raikage's orders.

Inoichi sighs, contemplating if he should answer or not, before finally saying, "My daughter."

"Is she hot?" Omoi asks curiously.

"Idiot!" Karui snaps, smacking him on the back of the head.

It was so ridiculous and the boy briefly reminded him so much of Naruto at that moment that Inoichi can't help but laugh, "I think she is very beautiful, but as her father, I admit I'm quite biased."

Omoi looks intrigued. "Hmm… you know if I found her, it could lead to world peace." The boy says thoughtfully.

The assembled shinobi look at him dumbly and it's his teammate the pink-haired girl Karui who vocalizes what they're all thinking, "Huh?"

"Well, just think about it, I find Lord Yamanaka's daughter, she's in danger, surrounded by our forces. She's wounded and they're about to defeat her when I step in and save her. She's grateful and the two of us fall in love, the Raikage and the Hokage, determined to make a lasting peace, decide to seal the peace talks with a political marriage and who better than the two of us who are ready and willing. We're happy together and have many beautiful, healthy and strong children. Our children become the leaders of the Kumo and Konoha, with our combined might the other villages no longer cause problems. Our children lead the world to a bright and hopeful future and the two of us live out our golden years in peace and harmony."

"And this was the exact moment that Konoha lost all respect for us." Karui says dryly, to B who nods his head in solemn agreement.

Inoichi, Chouza, and Shikaku all chuckle, and though he didn't say it, Inoichi disagreed. He could easily see his Rin and Ino being friends with the two quirky Lightning-nin.

"I'll send B, Omoi, and Karui with you to look for her." The Raikage says, the levity provided by young Omoi, while maybe not entirely appropriate to the situation, was all he needed to know in his heart that he was doing the right thing in pursuing peace with Konoha. It was likely that the girl was sent to find the spy, but that was past. In the future it may be an issue but for now, forging some kind of positive relationship with Konoha was what was best for his people. Besides, after Eiji and Gi's betrayal it was clear that he had some in house cleaning to do. "They'll be able to have any of my scouts you may run into stand down. Enough blood has been shed today."

"Thank you, Lord Raikage."

"While you're doing that, Lord Raikage, as soon as my forces find Yuko Nakano, we'll go speak with her." Shikaku says, not thrilled to have him there, but willing.

"Lord Nara!" Kimura says, running towards them, he looks distressed, "Lord Nara, come quick it's-"

But whatever he was about to say is drowned out by a massive explosion in the distance followed closely by a wave of intense chakra washing over them. All heads turn to the direction of the source as beyond the horizon glows red and orange. A powerful technique had just been unleashed. The chakra that hit them, even from this distance felt warm and furious. And Inoichi's stomach dropped as he knew the chakra signature very well.

"Rin."

 **s**

 **xXx-Author's Note-xXx**

 **s**

 **Well, here we are, the next chapter. I truly apologize for how long it has been since I last updated. Things are coming to a head, next chapter is obviously going to cover Rin, Yugao, and Hizashi versus Yugito, and what's happening there. I'm hoping to bring this story arc to a close and move on in a few more chapters. I'm excited to get back to Konoha, Ino, Naruto, and Sakura.**

 **I want Quinn/Rin to spend some time with her friends and family, and I've got an idea for another mission that I've been toying with for forever. And once that is completed I will move on to the chūnin exams. I've known for a while now how the chūnin exams are going to go, and I'm really excited to write it. So often nothing changes there, but I think you'll like the twist I'm going to put on it. If nothing else, like I said, I'm really excited to write it, it's just a matter of finally getting there. And to do that, I need to update more lol. Anyway, I'm working on the next chapter and hopefully it will be finished and up soon. Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you continue to enjoy this story.**


	39. Chapter 38

**Standard Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or Naruto, they belong to their respective owners. Please forgive any spelling or grammar mistakes, I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful.**

 **s**

 **xXx-Chapter 38-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn felt sick as she looked into the crazed eyes of the other woman, there was a manic sort of panic in them that said that her sanity was holding on by the tiniest of threads. She had never seen anyone look that terrified and desperate before.

"Where is my sister?" She snarls, taking a step towards them, the ground cracking under her feet.

Hizashi and Yugao both adjust their stances, "We don't know who you're talking about, there's nobody here but-." Hizashi answers, his voice firm and steady, but he is interrupted.

"LIAR!" The jinchūriki screams, "HER SCENT, YOU HAVE HER SCENT ON YOU!"

"There is nobody here but us." Hizashi responds.

"JUST… Just… please, just tell me where she is, please, just tell me where Yoko is, please." She's shaking now, and Quinn can see the tears welling in the other girl's eyes, "She's my little sister and she's all I have, please, we don't have to fight just give her back to me, please!"

Quinn could sense the despair coming from her and it made her wish that she did know where the other woman's sister was. If Ino went missing, Quinn didn't know what she would do.

"I'm sorry, but there's nobody here but us-" Hizashi tries to explain once again, but is interrupted as the jinchūriki takes another step towards them.

"Listen, I can smell her scent on one of you, it's faint but it's there, please, just give her back to me, please! She's only twelve years old, she has long blonde hair, a bit lighter than mine, she… she usually wears it up in a ponytail, she has… she has bright blue eyes and… and… and she was doing a mapping expedition with her team in the area, she's only a genin-" She stops abruptly when she hears Quinn's horrified gasp.

A blue eyed, blonde haired girl, only a genin… only mapping out the area… "Oh god…" Quinn whispers softly, the guilt comes slamming into her as she realizes what had happened. Quinn's eyes are wide with horror and guilt as she looks into the eyes of the other woman.

A second is all it takes for her to interpret the look on Quinn's face, "No…" She whispers as tears begin to stream down her face.

Quinn was almost certain that the pain she could sense coming off the other woman would kill her, "I… I didn't… I mean… I'm… I'm so, so, sorry, I-"

"Rin, no!" Yugao snaps, but it's too late.

The overwhelming pain that the other woman was feeling quickly and violently shifts into rage, and the blue wisps of flames that had been surrounding her body become an inferno as the flames coalesce into a cloak of chakra, two tails whipping violently behind her, "Sorry…" she growls, "SORRY! YOU MURDERED YOKO DIDN'T YOU, YOU KILLED HER!"

"I… I'm so sorry, I… I didn't…" Didn't what!?, Quinn asks herself viciously, didn't murder a twelve-year-old girl, didn't murder this poor woman's little sister.

Quinn gazes into the demonic yellow eyes of the other woman and all Quinn can do is says, "I'm sorry…"

The jinchūriki moves fast and Quinn would have been dead right there, her head slashed right off if Yugao hadn't reacted so quickly and shoved her out of the way.

"RRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUGGH!" The jinchūriki screams in rage, her eyes locked onto Quinn. She could feel it, pure and unfiltered hatred. She would not rest until she was dead and Quinn… Quinn didn't know if she had it in herself to fight. She had murdered the woman's sister, she deserved to die.

It was one thing to fight and kill in defense of others but that wasn't the case here. Quinn had murdered this woman's sister in cold blood, why, because they were in a hurry. Those terrified blue eyes of that girl she had killed still haunted her. It was fair, wasn't it, a life for a life, her life for the little sister's life, Yoko?

Having been made to miss her target once, the jinchūriki wastes no time in leaping after her prey, intent on tearing her to shreds.

This time it's Hizashi who interferes, leaping into to fight the jinchūriki head on, his arms a flurry of blows as he tries to pierce the chakra cloak.

"Rin, RUN!" Yugao orders, before rushing in to help Hizashi.

But Quinn can't do it, she can't move, she can only sit there on her hands and knees, looking on. Whoever, whatever, had brought her here should never have done that. They should have let her die in that wreck. That girl would still be alive if she had never been brought here. The pain that she could feel coming from the other woman was worse than anything Quinn had ever felt before. It was true loss, true loneliness. It was agony at its most visceral and brutal.

No one should ever have to feel that kind of pain and no one should ever, ever, be the cause of it. She'd done this unforgivable thing, she deserved to die. Death and the deepest pit of whatever hell existed. She was a monster worse than any demon that the other woman might contain.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Yugao quickly steps back and Hizashi moves in to take her place. The two of them were fighting with everything that they had, but it wasn't enough. They weren't facing a shinobi, they were facing a force of nature and it was going berserk.

As soon as the jinchūriki had begun to describe her sister, Yugao had instantly figured out that it was the kid that Rin had taken down and quick glance to Hizashi had shown that he figured it out too. It was bad, but if they could convince the jinchūriki that the girl was not with them, get her to move on then maybe they wouldn't have to fight.

Unfortunately, that went out the window almost instantly. Her student was too smart for her own good sometimes and had figured it out as well. But while Hizashi and she had the training, the time, and the experience to be able to set something like that aside, Rin didn't. Her gasp of horror had been all that the jinchūriki had needed to clue into her sister's fate as well.

Yugao was fast and had great reflexes, very few shinobi could equal her, and few still could claim to be faster, it was a miracle that she got to Rin before the jinchūriki, shoving her out of the way. She had ordered her student to run, but she hadn't, she was frozen where she had landed when Yugao had shoved her.

Rin had the potential to make a perfectly fine kunoichi one day, but this right here proved what Yugao had known from the beginning, ANBU was not for her. This mission was much too intense and much too dangerous for someone with Rin's psychological condition to handle, and yet the Hokage had insisted. Why? Well… she knew why, but she wasn't sure she agreed… in fact, no, she wholeheartedly disagreed. This was wrong and her student should never had been brought here in the first place.

And now it looked like she would never leave, hell, none of them would. A jinchūriki was their villages ultimate weapon, a force of nature. And this one had gone berserk. Yugao could think of maybe a handful of shinobi who might be able to go head to head with a rampaging jinchūriki and unfortunately none of them were here at the moment.

With prep time, with a good, solid, well prepared team, then maybe, maybe she could have pulled off a win, but still it would be with heavy casualties. And Hizashi, while a skilled jōnin, was a member of the branch house of the Hyuga clan and didn't have access to the most devastating of the gentle fist techniques which were sorely needed.

No, she was going to die today, as was Hizashi, there was no getting around that. She accepted that, but she had hoped that maybe her student would survive, but now… it was all Yugao and Hizashi could do to keep the raging jinchūriki away, and Rin was frozen in place, overwhelmed by guilt.

She wasn't equipped to handle a situation like this, and in truth most people weren't. It took a lot of time and experience and a certain level of detachment to accept a situation like this. Right now Rin wasn't thinking of her actions as those of a shinobi, of taking out an enemy combatant, she was viewing them through a different eyes.

The jinchūriki was bathed in a chakra cloak of blue flames that took the shape of a two tailed cat. The chakra was so concentrated that it made the air around them thick, filled almost with a kind of burning miasma. Still she and Hizashi had to fight on, better to die fighting than die doing nothing. She sees Hizashi get knocked off balance and rushes in to defend him, blocking the claws of the jinchūriki with her blade, and leaving notches along the edge.

She quickly pulls back and duck low before dashing forward, trying to pierce through the chakra cloak but to no avail. The sword can't penetrate the chakra. The jinchūriki grabs the blade with her bare hands and rips it away from her, tossing Yugao's sword aside. Then faster than Yugao could blink, she feels her throat constrict as the jinchūriki wraps a hand around her neck and lifts her off the ground and begins to squeeze.

The chakra burned her skin and her throat was being crushed and for a moment Yugao's vision is clouded with bright dots of light, and then the pressure is gone and the jinchūriki's grip is released and Yugao falls to the ground. Hizashi had regained his bearings and had leapt back into the fray. His arms a whirlwind of motion as he strikes at their foe, knocking blue wisps of flame away with every strike. Yugao's eyes scan the battle field, her sword was too far away to go for, not without abandoning Hizashi and so she draws a shorter wakizashi blade.

Hizashi meanwhile had been pushed back onto the defensive, quickly and deftly dodging the furious claws and chakra tail strikes of the raging kunoichi. Hizashi leaps into the air twirling in a corkscrew motion, passing over a slash of a claw and a swipe of one of the tails simultaneously. He is then caught in the gut by a kick and knocked back.

Yugao dashes forward desperate to reach him, but she knows she is going to be too late. The jinchūriki has leapt into the air and is bringing a giant chakra claw down on Hizashi's head. For a moment the world stops and Yugao is certain that she is about to lose a friend and comrade. And then just before the blow lands, Hizashi begins to glow with chakra and spins. The fabled **Kaiten** , the Heavenly Rotation, the ultimate defense of the Hyūga clan. It was a technique preciously guarded and reserved for the main branch, and yet Hizashi knew it and it had saved his life.

The jinchūriki's chakra claw clashed against the rotating dome of chakra created by Hizashi and the beast was forced to pull back. Hizashi quickly ends the technique, breathing heavily as Yugao moves to stand by him.

"That's quite a trick to have up your sleeve." Yugao says breathless as the three combatants take a second to catch their breath.

"I wasn't sure it was going to work, I'd never been able to use it until now. But, considering I was about to lose my head, I thought why not give it a try, lucky time to get it right."

Yugao can't help the bark of laughter that escapes, it was just so incredibly absurd that there was nothing else to do.

"I don't like this, I don't know how much longer we can hold her off." Yugao says, glancing back at her student who is still paralyzed with guilt.

"If you have any ideas, now is the time to try, it looks like she's ready to go another round." Hizashi says, gesturing to their foe.

The jinchūriki was breathing heavily, her eyes closed tight. The chakra around her was flailing around more violently than ever and the demonic chakra was getting heavier. She was drawing upon more of the beast's power.

"I might be able to provide an opening, but you'll need to make the kill shot, stop her heart." Yugao says quietly.

Hizashi gives a subtle nod of his head. "I'm ready when you are." He says adjusting his stance slightly, ready to go on the offensive.

Yugao nods her head, it was time to activate her ultimate technique. **"Sacred Leaf Art: Phase Five, Dance of the Full Moon!"**

Five of her void clones spring into action just as the jinchūriki opens her eyes. Her cloak flares as she slashes at the first clone to arrive, her attack passing right through as the void clone strikes her, moving through her chakra cloak and body and passing behind her, ripping pieces of the chakra cloak away. Then the second one hits, slashing through her and ripping more of the cloak away. Then the next and the next, and the next. Each time, with each clone the jinchūriki slashes at the approaching clone, before shrieking in agony as her chakra is violently ripped from her body.

Yugao follows closely behind as her last void clone rips away the last of the chakra cloak. Yugao's wakizashi poised to strike the jinchūriki with a killing blow. But more than a jinchūriki, Yugito Nii was also a skilled kunoichi in her own right, and she manages to fight through the paralyzing pain and barely dodges Yugao's strike. However, in doing so she stepped right into Hizashi's attack, his palm pushing forward, slamming into her chest and shoving his chakra through her system and into her heart. A killing blow.

Yugito Nii goes flying back, eyes rolled into the back of her head, stumbling and crashing due to the force of the blow.

For a moment Hizashi and Yugao breathe a sigh of relief, unable to believe that it worked, as they stare at the unmoving form of the jinchūriki. They were both spent, Hizashi's **Kaiten** was an incomplete technique used against a powerful foe and it had been draining, while Yugao's technique was a huge drain on her reserves. And neither of them had entered this battle fresh. For one glorious moment they thought it was truly over.

And then the jinchūriki gasps for breath, sitting up quickly as blue flames cover her and her chakra cloak reforms. Her eyes are crazed and she looks unhinged as she climbs to her feet, glaring at them with an ugly snarl.

Before either Hizashi or herself can even blink, the jinchūriki has crossed the distance between them, planting her fist into Hizashi's face, shattering his nose, while whirling into a vicious round house kick, catching Yugao in the chest and cracking her sternum. Both Konoha jōnin fight through the pain and catch themselves to keep from crashing, but neither of them have a moment to breath. The jinchūriki is on them attacking with an unmatched ferocity.

Yugao attempts to slash at the jinchūriki with her blade, but is forced to drop low to avoid being caught in the face with a fireball that the jinchūriki spits out at her. Hizashi tries to counter attack and is caught by one of the tails whipping around them, wrapping itself around his waist and slamming him into the ground, he barely manages to roll out of the way as the jinchūriki slams her foot into the ground, cracking the earth where his head had just been.

 **"Sacred Leaf Art: Dance of the-uurrghk!"** Yugao's technique is interrupted with a chakra cloaked claw to her stomach, piercing deep inside of her. The pain is unreal and she faintly hears the cries of Hizashi and her student. The pain and pressure are intense and then the pressure in her belly is gone and for a moment she thinks she is flying, before realizing that the jinchūriki has tossed her aside like a piece of trash.

Yugao lands with a dull, jarring thud. Her breathing is ragged as she tries to compress the wound on her stomach with her left hand and tries to push herself up to her feet with her right. But its not enough, and she doesn't even manage to get her to her knees. She watches as Hizashi reengages the jinchūriki, fighting furiously, his arms a blur, striking at the beast, but to no avail.

The jinchūriki breaks through his onslaught, grabs him by the face and then slams his head into the ground, she then lifts his head up and repeats the process three more times. Yugao's eyes flit to her student who is openly weeping, and a flash of fear passes through her.

"Rin! Run!" Yugao cries out, her voice slightly strangled as she coughs up blood. "Go!" She screams, trying to get up, managing to make it to her knees before a sharp pain in her abdomen rips through her, sapping her of her strength and forcing her back to the ground. She didn't want her student to die, she wanted to protect her, but she couldn't. She could do nothing except watch as the jinchūriki stalked towards her purposefully.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

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She could hear the battle raging nearby and could feel the pressure of the demonic chakra. The last time she had felt chakra like this was when she was little girl, the night of the Kyuubi attack. Though the memories were faded and faint. Hana struggles to her feat, fighting against her own body to do so. She couldn't do nothing, she couldn't just lay there.

Hizashi, Yugao, Nami, Rin, she had let all of them down. She had failed to protect Nami Yamata, their entire reason for being here. If Rin and Yugao hadn't shown up when they did, she would be dead already. Hana manages to get to her feet before her legs give out underneath her. She stumbles and falls but manages to catch herself on the cave wall and keep herself up. She didn't know if she had the strength to climb to her feet again.

Hana looks back at Nami and then around at the three brothers, her faithful companions. The brothers had given everything for her. Step by step, inch by inch Hana makes her way towards the exit of the cave. Her body is screaming at her in protest, begging her to stop. The electric burns, the wind cuts, each and every part of her body was in pain. Her head was pounding, and she could feel herself shaking and still she fought on.

The light at the end of the tunnel, pushing forward to that light. She had to help, she couldn't just lay there, she couldn't do nothing.

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 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Quinn could only look on helplessly as the jinchūriki took down her sensei and Hizashi. Her fault, this was all her fault. If she had never been reborn into this world, hell, if she had never existed in the first place, then none of this would have happened. That girl would still be alive, her sensei and Hizashi wouldn't be clinging to life.

The guilt was eating her alive, she wanted to die, she wanted it to be over, she wanted to escape this wretched existence of hers, she wanted… she wanted Ino. She wanted her sister, and she wanted Naruto and Sakura, she wanted her mother and father. She wanted to live happily and peacefully with them.

But what she wanted didn't matter. She didn't matter. She was an anathema, an abomination. No matter what world she lived in all she caused was pain and suffering. She can feel the heat of the black flames begin to creep into the back of her mind.

Amaterasu.

She wanted to escape the vicious, angry heat of those black flames. This was for the best. All she did was hurt people. She'd hurt those she had loved back in her old world. She had disappointed her mother, shamed her father, betrayed Santana and Brittany. She had lied to Finn. She had bullied and harassed Rachel. Here, she had helped to lead her sister and friends into the darkness of the shinobi world, she had lied and betrayed the trust of her mom and dad. There was nothing redeemable about her.

Her blank eyes look up at the woman standing over her and finally some life returns to her. "Do it." Quinn says softly, "Kill me, I deserve it."

The woman is looking down at her with rage and contempt, her fingers flexing, twitching with anticipation. Her chakra cloak flaring hotter than ever, the twin tails whipping behind her in agitation.

Quinn leans back on her knees, opening herself up to be an easier, more vulnerable target. "End it, take your revenge." Quinn says, her voice taking on a slightly hysterical edge to it. The fear was getting to her, her cowardice and will to live was fighting against her knowledge that she deserved to die. She really was a coward at heart.

"Do it!" Quinn cries out, spreading her arms wide, ready to receive death. She closes her eyes, her mind drifting to her family. She wanted her last thoughts to be of them, of her father and mother, of Ino.

She hears the blood curdling cry of the jinchūriki, the hum of her claws as she brings them down, and then she felt the spray of liquid splatter against her, and when Quinn opens her eyes she sees she is covered in blood, but not her own. Standing in front of her, arms spread wide as the jinchūriki's claws split her from shoulder to hip is Hana.

All sensation and feeling leave Quinn as Hana begins to fall to the ground, and Quinn barely manages to catch her before she hits the ground. Quinn cradles the girl in her arms and as she does so she looks into the glassy wide eyes of Hana Inuzuka who had died instantly.

"Hana?" Quinn whimpers, unable to believe it. She had been so focused on the jinchūriki and acceptance of her own death that she hadn't sensed the other girl's arrival.

"Hana please…. Please, wake up." Quinn pleads softly. She just couldn't understand it, Hana couldn't possibly be dead. Hana had a full life ahead of her, she had her dogs to take care of. She had a mother and a brother and a clan waiting for her. They were supposed to go on a date if they got out of this together.

"Hana, no…"

"Did you care for her?" A viciously gleeful voice asks, "was she important to you?"

Quinn looks up blankly at the jinchūriki standing over them, a cruel smile is on her face.

"You're in pain, shall I kill the others too, before I end your miserable existence?" She shrieks.

Quinn stares up in disbelief, "Hana didn't do anything." Her voice is soft and weak, she just couldn't understand it. Why kill Hana? Hana was innocent. Quinn was the guilty one, killing her was justice, but killing Hana served no purpose. "Why, why did… Hana never did anything to you?"

Quinn just couldn't wrap her mind around it.

"She deserved to die, you all deserve to die, you killed my sister!" The jinchūriki roars.

Quinn shakes her head, Hana didn't deserve to die. The disbelief and the guilt disappear in an instant, and are replaced with that same foreign rage from before. That white-hot anger that had fueled her technique as she had fought against that Kumo jōnin was back, more furious than ever. It was feeding off of her own rage.

Hana didn't deserve to die, Hana deserved to live a long and happy life. But now she was gone, this woman had killed her. She had killed Hana and she seemed happy about it. Quinn hated her, hated her more fiercely than she had ever hated anyone or anything in her entire life. Quinn didn't know it was possible to feel hatred like this.

Fire begins to course through her as she starts to convert her chakra. She reaches her threshold point in a matter of seconds, quicker than she had ever managed it before. But now, instead of slowly trying to control the conversion she would just let the fire chakra run loose and consume her. If the conversion wasn't carefully managed, and if you lost control of the flames you essentially became a massive human shaped bomb. The ultimate suicide technique if not handled carefully, and Quinn no longer cared. Let it end now, because it didn't matter how powerful this demon bitch was, she wouldn't survive this.

She could feel the flames coursing through her, consuming her every cell, as every bit of chakra was converted into the flame element. The inferno inside of her was reaching its breaking point, total conversion was upon her. Earth could be molded, lightning could be guided, water could be shaped, and wind could be directed. But fire…

Fire was an entirely different beast.

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 **xXx-Author's Note-xXx**

 **s**

 **Well, here you go, the next chapter. I finished it much quicker than I had anticipated so I'm excited to finally post it. It's a rough chapter, but I hope you all enjoyed it still. I will try to have the next chapter up as soon as possible. Thank you for reading and for your continued support.**


	40. Chapter 39

**Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Glee. Also, please forgive any spelling and grammar errors, I try to catch them all but I know I'm not always successful. Yay! This is the first update of the new year, and I hope you all enjoy it!**

 **S**

 **xXx-Chapter 39-xXx**

 **s**

The stillness around her felt unnatural, Yugao could still feel the heat from the flames as her student had recklessly pushed past her threshold point to total conversion. The power and force from the explosion had been awe inspiring and terrible to behold. In all her years she had never seen anything create that much devastation.

Yugao sat there bewildered, surrounded by ash and smoke with Hizashi laying down in front of her. Covered in burns and completely out of chakra, he was at least breathing, though in critical condition. Hizashi was the only reason she was still alive. When the wall of flames had come for her she was certain that it was the end. Nothing in her arsenal of jutsu was powerful enough to stop the flames from getting to her and she was too injured to even think of out running them or finding cover, but looking around that probably wouldn't have done her any good, anyway.

It was as she closed her eyes and accepted her fate that Hizashi had jumped beside her and used up the last of everything he had to protect them both with his Kaiten. But even that powerful technique hadn't been enough to completely protect them from the blast, though it had protected them from the worst of it. Hizashi had born the brunt of the explosion and had first and second degree burns all over his body, while she was only a little singed. It was painful, but not debilitating.

Black snow began to fall and Yugao thought it the strangest thing until she realized it was ash. She gazes up at the sky and sees the mushroom shaped cloud of smoke billowing down. Such power and destruction, she knew what the Third believed her student was capable of, she had read the file, but seeing this… it had to be true, there was no other explanation. Though, Yugao felt it ultimately didn't matter at this point, her student was dead.

She couldn't sense Rin at all, nor could she sense the jinchūriki either. All Yugao wanted to do was curl up into a ball. The shock at the immensity of the explosion was beginning to wear off and the pain in her stomach was coming back. Yugao raises her top a bit, exposing the open wound and concentrates her chakra into her hand, doing the little bit of first aid she was able to. She would need to see a real doctor when she got back to the village, but she could at least stop the bleeding.

Once she has taken care of herself she goes to work on Hizashi. Despite his burns, the worst of his injuries were around the head and she didn't dare use any chakra on wounds there, so she reaches into her pouch and pulls out some bandages. Nami, Hizashi, herself, and the three brothers were the only survivors of this mission. Hana had died to save Rin and Rin had sacrificed herself to stop the jinchūriki.

She felt numb inside as she carefully begins to wrap Hizashi's head, and tries to think of how she's going to get everyone out of here. None of them were fit to travel, but she was at the very least conscious. She couldn't give up, she couldn't let this mission end in… failure…

If she got Nami back to the village then the mission would be marked as a success, but there was nothing about any of this that screamed victory. She had failed her ultimate mission, which was to train and protect Rin, and Hana was dead. Hizashi had used all of his chakra, was covered in burns, and he had taken a serious head wound that she didn't know if he even could recover from, and who knew if Nami would survive the journey? How, in any way, was this mission a success?

Suddenly, out of nowhere she is hit with the faint presence of demonic chakra, and an agonized and angry scream rips through the air. Yugao concentrates, focusing her senses on the source of the demonic chakra. She looks over to where her chakra senses are telling her the source is and a soft gust of wind blows the smoke and ash out of the way and standing there, struggling to her feet is the jinchūriki.

Her skin had been seared off completely, and she was just a mash of skeleton and charred meat, but she was alive. Angry, blue flames began to swirl around her, and Yugao could only look on horrified as her flesh began to repair itself. Yugao clenches her fists, as a sense of complete despair falls upon her. Her student had sacrificed her life, Hana had died, and yet the beast was still alive.

The jinchūriki lets out one more shriek, her skin pink and fresh and her hair begins to grow back out, and within moments she is back to her normal self. The blue, cat-like chakra cloak wrapping around her. Yugao's shoulder's slump and all hope fails her, jinchūriki truly were a force of nature. If it could survive Rin's explosion, then what hope did she have?

She watches the jinchūriki carefully, and as she does so Yugao slowly, futilely, draws a kunai from her pouch. If she was going to die, she would go down fighting, she owed Hana and Rin that much at least. But seconds pass and the jinchūriki is paying her and Hizashi no mind. Instead their focus is zeroed in on a location about a hundred yards away. Yugao follows their gaze, and another gust of wind pushes more ash and soot away, and for a moment Yugao isn't sure what she's seeing.

And then her eyes focus and she realizes what it is, who it is. It's Rin, but different, Yugao had never seen anything like this. She had seen chakra cloaks even before this, and she'd heard descriptions of techniques like the Uchiha's Susanoo, but this was something different entirely. It was as if Rin's body were made of living flame, contained and shaped to human form. Her hair normally blonde was flowing about wildly behind her, an inferno of the same flames that made up the rest of her.

The light she emanated made it hard to look at her, but the form was so mesmerizing it was impossible to look away. Her student turns her head slightly and for the briefest moment they make eye contact. Her eyes were no longer the lovely shade of blue that they usually were, but a brilliant white that had the intensity of the sun and Yugao found that she could find no emotions or thoughts behind them, no trace of the young girl who was her student.

There was none of the conflict or doubt, none of the fear, or even a bit of the angst that was normal for that age. Nor was there any of the compassion that Rin was usually incapable of concealing. And in Rin's arms, were the last ashen remains of Hana Inuzuka, a skeleton that was crumbling away to dust and scattering to the winds. And when the remains are gone, Rin's stares down at the empty space for a moment, before her hands drop to her side.

Yugao couldn't understand it, how was Rin still alive? During their time together Yugao had become quite attuned with her student's chakra signature, and while she was nowhere near as powerful a sensor as Rin, she was still one of the strongest in the village. She should have easily been able to pick up her student's chakra signature, especially with how much energy she was putting out. The ground was literally melting beneath her feet, the amount of chakra that would take would be…

And then it hit her, that the amount of energy she was putting out was oversaturating the area with her chakra. To anyone who was far away, Rin was probably a bright beacon that was screaming her location to any and all chakra sensitive people for miles, but Yugao was so close that her senses were overwhelmed. It wasn't that she couldn't sense Rin, it was that Rin was the only thing she could sense. Even the potent chakra of the jinchūriki was barely pushing through.

This was beyond anything that Yugao was equipped to handle, she didn't even know where to begin. Rin needed so much more than she could provide. What in the hell had the Third been thinking, asking her to do this and… and his plans for her in the future, what was he thinking? She couldn't make sense of anything right now.

And then the jinchūriki snarls, her twin tails whipping angrily behind her, lashing out. And then, almost faster than Yugao could follow, the jinchūriki charges at Rin. There wasn't even enough time for Yugao to shout out a warning, but it wasn't needed.

One second the jinchūriki is charging in, ready to try and tear Rin to shreds, the next, faster than she could blink, Rin has backhanded the jinchūriki and sent her flying away. Yugao has to whip her head to the right to follow the trail of destruction, it happened so fast. And with a loud, earth shattering crash, the jinchūriki slams into a nearby boulder, crumbling it to pieces.

As the dust clears, Yugao can see the jinchūriki struggling to her feet. The left side of her face has an imprint seared into it and her cheekbone and jaw have been shattered. But the damage is quickly repairing itself, the burn heals away into nothing and jaw and cheekbones knit themselves back together until its as if nothing had happened.

The jinchūriki growls but this time there is more caution there, and she doesn't charge recklessly in, instead studying her opponent.

 **S**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

What was she dealing with? What kind of monster was this murdering bitch!? Matatabi was the only reason she was alive, the twin-tailed cat supercharging her with chakra, managing to keep the spark of life awake in her, even as her body was nearly incinerated from the force of the blast. Yugito had been forced to retreat deep inside of herself, deep inside the cage itself, in order to keep her mind from going crazy as her body endured those flames.

She had been arrogant in her anger. Seeing the pain on that girl's face, knowing that she was hurting in the same way that Yugito was over the loss of her sister… it had made her arrogant and stupid. You never, ever, under any circumstance drew out a fight. She should have slain that girl when she had the chance, she should have reacted when she started to use her technique, but she had been so angry, so furious, and so cocky that she had wanted to beat the girl down, break her and humiliate her.

She wanted to make this Konoha girl feel as helpless as she did. She wanted to let the girl give it everything she had and then show her that it wasn't enough. She wanted to make her suffer. It had been a mistake and it nearly cost her, her life. Her arrogance had almost allowed Yoko's murderer to defeat her. She wasn't going to make that mistake again, and as soon as her body was at full strength, and Matatabi gave her the go ahead, Yugito had wasted no time in trying to strike the girl down.

What did she care about whatever technique the girl currently had on? She was just some lowly, murdering scum, while Yugito was a proud jōnin of Kumo, and the bearer of Matatabi, the two-tailed demon cat. What was some strange fire cloak to her, especially compared to the raw might of Matatabi's blue flames? And so, once more she had charged in, intent on ending it quickly, and then suddenly her face felt like it was being melted off and her jaw had nearly been knocked off of her face, and then boom! She had been back-handed into a boulder, shattering it into a million pieces.

As Yugito struggled to her feet, she looked at Yoko's murderer warily. She was a jōnin of Kumo, trusted soldier of the Raikage, Killer B's training partner, a jinchūriki. She was one of Kumo's ultimate weapons, and yet she had just been knocked aside like trash.

 _"What is she?"_ Yugito thinks, frustrated. _"Is she Konoha's jinchūriki… I don't sense any demonic chakra?"_

 _"_ _ **No, she is not one of our kin."**_

 __ _"How can you be sure? Even Lord Raikage doesn't generate this kind of power and no one has seen the nine-tails in years. Could she be its latest vessel?"_ Yugito asks Matatabi.

Besides the power that working with Matatabi granted her, the wisdom of the ancient cat demon was another boon that came from working with it. And right now, she needed information, because that girl had just unleashed a technique unlike any she had seen before, and just now she had just knocked her aside like she was some fresh faced genin.

" _ **I know my sibling's chakra, this feels nothing like it."**_

" _There's no way some brat could produce this much chakra!"_ Yugito growls.

" _ **No."**_ Matatabi agrees, _ **"It is not human, it's…"**_

" _It's what?"_ Yugito asks, she'd never heard Matatabi sound like this before, if she didn't know better she would think the demon was nervous.

" _ **Old… ancient, even by my standards. I have never sensed chakra like this before, I do not know what this girl is, but we need to be cautious. Whatever the source of her power, she is dangerous and I cannot save you from another blast like the one earlier."**_

" _Then I'll have to kill her quickly."_ Yugito says, trying not to let what Matatabi had just told her, bother her. It didn't matter what this girl was, all that mattered was that she pay for murdering Yoko. She had let her rage consume her and had fought like a beast, but now something more was at play and it was time to temper the power of the beast with the cunning of a kunoichi.

But the fact was, she wasn't sure how to proceed. The girl was just standing there, her form completely changed. She was living fire, and it was a technique unlike any she had seen before.

"You killed Hana." The girl says, her voice is strange, echoing with power as if she was harmonizing with someone else as she spoke.

Yugito gives a cocky sort of grin, that doesn't reach her rage filled eyes. She sends chakra to her hands, reinforcing them into claws that could cut through steel. "Don't worry, you'll join her soon enough."

"When I killed your sister, I made it quick." The girl says almost casually, like it didn't matter, and Yugito's lips curl into an angry snarl.

"Don't you dare talk about her!"

"Just a quick slice of my blade and her head was gone, she was dead before she hit the ground. No pain, no suffering."

A shiver of anger passes through her, some of it her own, but some of it belonging to Matatabi as well. Caused by the indifference that the murder was being spoken of, the bond between demon and container shining through. Unlike the other villages, Kumo jinchūriki learned to work with their demons and formed a bond.

The girl then gives a slight tilt of her head, her bright, searing eyes staring right at her. "Your death will be much slower."

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Yugao watched as her student and the jinchūriki stared each other down and exchange a few words. And then in blink, there's an explosion of dirt and flames, as Rin dashes forward and slams her fist into the side of the jinchūriki's head, sending her flying, Rin then disappears, faster than Yugao can follow, and appears in the pathway of the wayward jinchūriki and sends her flying in a different direction with a kick.

The assault that Rin was leveling against the jinchūriki was brutal, and Yugao could barely follow it. Guy, going full out, maximizing his chakra out put could maybe reach the speeds that Rin was currently working at, and could produce the kind of power that Rin was generating with her strikes. But the backlash would be terrible.

Rin, however, seemed to be under no strain as she knocked the jinchūriki around the battlefield like some kind of rag doll. Nothing the other woman could do was able to fend off the assault. Each strike from Rin was followed by a small boom, from the impact. Each hit breaking bones and searing flesh from the skin. At one point, when the jinchūriki attempted to counter with a strike with her chakra tail, Rin had caught it in her hand, and the used it as a grip to whip her over her head and slam her into the ground.

It was clear to Yugao that Rin held the upper hand, all she had to do was end it and they could get out of here. But as the fight progressed Yugao realized that Rin wasn't trying to win the fight, she was drawing it out. Each of her strikes was designed to cause as much pain and damage as she could, but not enough to kill. Rin was drawing it out, giving the jinchūriki just enough time to heal from the worst of the wounds before inflicting new ones all over again.

"YAAAAAAAAAAGH!" The jinchūriki shrieks in pain as Rin grabs onto her face and forces her down onto her knees, and just stands there holding her face. The jinchūriki is clawing helplessly at Rin's arm, her chakra whipping around violently, as she shrieks in agony. The smell of burning flesh polluting the air, overpowering the charcoal and ash.

This was not Rin. This was not her student.

"Rin, stop!" Yugao calls out, struggling to her feet. Rin tilts her head in Yugao's direction, and the two of them lock eyes once more. And just like before, all she is able to see is the intense white light, burning behind those eyes.

"Rin! That's enough!" Yugao calls out again.

Rin looks from Yugao to the jinchūriki, who's cries of agony were now more of a choking gurgling sound as her face had been melted off from the heat. Rin lets go of the face and for a moment Yugao breathes easier. And then the moment is broken.

"No." Rin says, her voice echoing with a strange power behind it. "It's not nearly enough."

Rin then grabs the jinchūriki by the face once more, instantly undoing the repairs that the demon had been making to its host, and she slams her into the ground head first. Rin holds her there as she writhes in pain, kicking and clawing, trying to make her escape. But it's futile.

Yugao attempts to take a step towards her student, not sure what she was going to do, not sure how she was going to stop this, but knowing she had to try. But her legs give out from under her and she falls back to her knees.

"RIN! STOPT IT!"

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Hana was dead.

This girl killed Hana.

Hana was dead.

This girl killed Hana.

Hana was dead.

This girl killed Hana.

It was her fault, she killed Hana, she had to pay. The flames, the flames were telling her this, feeding her anger and her pain. She killed Hana, so she had to pay. She had to make this girl suffer. Hana hadn't deserved to die. There was nothing else in this world, only her rage, her hatred, her vengeance, and Hana's death.

She had to make this girl suffer, she didn't have a choice. The flames were telling her she had to. She had to hurt the one who killed Hana. That was all there was to it. Her screams of agony were the balm that would quench the flames.

She had to.

She had to.

She had to.

The flames were surrounding her, consuming her, feeding into her anger and hatred, feeding into her pain.

She killed Hana.

Hana was dead.

It was her fault.

The flames needed to be quenched and only vengeance could do that. Vengeance for Hana. There was nothing else in this world. She had to make this girl suffer for Hana's death and she would destroy anything foolish enough to get in her way.

 _ **"You pushed yourself too far and too hard. You forced what you were not yet ready to wield and now you've lost control."**_ A voice from the flames echoes around her. It's a woman's voice, gentle and calm, but powerful as well.

Quinn whips her head around trying to see through the flames and the rage, to discern where the voice was coming from.

 _ **"You should not have pushed it, you were coming along just fine. And you certainly should not have done this while in such an emotional state. You've lost complete control, haven't you? My sweet girl, you will pay a heavy price for this."**_

Quinn roars as she shakes her head violently, trying to recapture the rage. The voice was calming her down, and she didn't want to be calm, she didn't want to feel anything but rage. She wanted to lash out, she couldn't survive the pain otherwise.

 _ **"Dear heart, focus on my voice. You must regain control. Let go of your hatred, too much pain has been wrought and now your soul is dangerously out of balance. For your own sake, please my love, let go. This is not why you were brought here and this is not who you are."**_

Quinn recognized the voice, she'd heard it before, so very long ago, but where? Where had she heard this voice before? And suddenly her world comes back into focus. She looks down at the girl she was pressing into the ground and she realizes what she had been doing. Quinn gasps and backs frantically away from the girl she had just been… oh god, what had she done!?

 _ **"Quiet your mind, my love, you are losing control again. Focus on my voice."**_

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

Yugao watched as her student suddenly stumbled away from the jinchūriki, almost in fright. She was still covered in flames, but they seemed somehow less wild, less an inferno and more in control. Something was changing once more. Was Rin finally running out of chakra or… or was her student regaining control?

"Rin?" Yugao calls out softly, but whatever was going to be said is interrupted by a pulse of demonic chakra. So powerful that she could physically feel it, not just sense it. The pulse of chakra, also pushing at the ash and smoke as it disturbed the air. Blue flames suddenly explode from the body and a terrible, inhuman roar fills the air.

 **s**

 **xXx-Scene Break-xXx**

 **s**

 _Yugito stood before Matatabi, gazing into the eyes of her partner. She had retreated so deep into her own mind that Yugito wasn't sure that she would ever be able to get back out again. She knew that outside, out there, she was enduring an agonizing death. She was going to die. She was going to die at the hands of Yoko's murderer._

 _"It can't end like this?"_

 _ **"Don't do anything stupid child-"**_

 _"I can't beat her, but you can."_

 _ **"Yugito."**_ _Matatabi growls in warning._

 _"You can get justice for Yoko." Yugito says, resolute. Yugito looks down at her hands and in them is a simple paper seal that once used to adorn a cage that kept Matatabi trapped. The seal, once a lock, was now a bond that allowed she and Matatabi to share their power._

 _ **"Yugito!"**_ _Matatabi roars, angry, scared. Scared for what the first human that she had come to respect and even care for, in what felt like eons, was going to do._

 _Yugito smiles sadly up at her partner, her friend. "Goodbye my friend and… I'm sorry." And with that she tears the seal in half, and the powers that held the beast in check were destroyed and Matatabi, the twin-tailed cat demon was released._

 **s**

 **xXx-Author's Note-xXx**

 **s**

 **Well, there you have it, the first update of the new year. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and have enjoyed the story thus far. Just to clarify, the amount of power the Quinn/Rin unleashed when she reached total conversion was equivalent to Pain's technique that completely wiped out Konoha, only rather than just force like he used, her technique was backed by fire. Essentially, a small nuclear explosion, just without the radiation. I want to thank everyone for reading this story and for your support, and I hope you all liked this chapter. I'm already working on the next one and I hope to have it up soon.**


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